


The Price of Pride

by NickyM96



Category: ReyEm, ReyMir - Fandom, Yemin (TV 2019)
Genre: OzBerk, OzGok, TurkishDizi, YeminDizi - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:34:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 72,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26478052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NickyM96/pseuds/NickyM96
Summary: Events leading up to and following the tragic beach dinner date (episodes 39-41) still haunt both Emir and Reyhan. Reyhan has no idea why Emir is so angry, but she refuses to give up on her marriage. Emir is confused at who his wife really is. Is she the manipulative gold digger the evidence shows her to be, or does she actually have a heart of gold? But after an unexpected illness strikes, will any of that even matter anymore? Will Emir have a change of heart when he faces the possibility of truly losing her?
Relationships: Emir/Reyhan, Reyhan/Emir, Zafer/Other
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

  
  


**Prologue**

_"This is the most beautiful day of my life."_

She had said those words to him just before everything changed. It took just a split second for the look in his eyes to go from utter adoration to utter disgust. Just one minute for her dream date to turn into a nightmare. The worst thing is about the whole thing ... she has no idea why.

_"Payment ... for your services."_

She looks down at the check in her hand, the one he had given her at the conclusion of their beautiful date. She's confused. She's hurt. She's offended. But before she can figure any of it out, he's gone. He left her there on the beach all alone.

Without his guidance, she's unable to navigate the unfamiliar, sandy terrain easily. She doesn't pay any attention to where she's walking and steps on too many pieces of broken shells and discarded glass. She feels none of it, though. All she feels is numb. Why did he do this?

She gets no answers when she gets home to confront him. Only more accusations and insults.

_"I can't stand either your greed or your duplicity. And the worst is being under the same roof as you, breathing the same air. This is an indescribably terrible thing. So bad that it's impossible to sustain it."_

The pain she feels from his verbal blows is too much for her to take. She feels almost as if she can't breathe, his words so cruel. So she leaves. But not without parting words from Cavidan.

_"So you leave just as you came. You have not been able to take away my son or my property. I'll take my last name from you. My son will divorce you! And without paying a single penny! You will lose everything that you thought you won. Now take your useless pride and get out!"_

She doesn't know how she endured that house for so long. So it would seem like it would be a relief to finally have an excuse to leave. But for some reason, it doesn't. For some strange reason, leaving feels wrong. She sits on a bench and can't stop herself from thinking. She made a vow to her uncle not to give up on her marriage for any reason. But does he intend for her to stay and be mistreated and abused by Cavidan? Basically called a whore by her own husband?

But will leaving be the equivalent of admitting she's guilty of whatever Emir thinks she's done? She isn't guilty of anything. She's never done anything to be ashamed of. She needs to stand her ground.

So she goes back.

He's surprised to see her. And if she's honest with herself, she's a little surprised to be back. She's as angry at him as she is confused by him. She's hurt, but she's also determined.

 _"I don't know what you blame me for. But I will fight for this marriage,"_ she tells him. _"I will close my eyes to your every injustice, to every insult. Because I didn't do anything to make me bow my head. And I will not. I can keep my head held high. I will be silent before you. I will endure. One day you will understand that you were mistaken. I will endure until that day comes. One day this nightmare that you made me experience will come to an end. So I will endure until that day comes. My patience will be your punishment. Because you will understand you were wrong."_

She pulls out the check, making sure he sees it. Making sure he knows what it is. Making sure he knows it means nothing to her. Then she looks him in the eyes and tears it up, tossing the pieces to the floor. She leaves him standing there because she just doesn't want to see him at the moment. Let him be the one to do the thinking now. 

**Chapter 1**

The drive to his office seems to take longer than usual, causing Emir to swear most creatively at the traffic causing the delay. Today is not the day for this. He’s out of patience and all he wants to do is get to the one place where he believes he can have a little peace. This holding is the one place in his life that’s not overflowing with signs of Reyhan. And right now, he can’t be anywhere near her. The past four days have been filled with an awkward silence. He needed to get out of that house. And away from her.

“Emir?” Zafer says, shocked at seeing him when he finally arrives. “What are you doing here today? I thought you said you’d be working from home.”

Emir’s dismissive grunt clearly isn’t a satisfactory response for Zafer and he ends up following Emir into his office and closing the door.

“I don’t really want company right now, Zafer,” Emir says, trying to be nice. He’s about two seconds from bodily throwing his best friend out the door. And he doesn’t want it to get that far.

“You’ve got that I’m mad at Reyhan look on your face again,” Zafer sighs in disappointment. He just shakes his head while taking a seat on the side of Emir’s desk. “I’m not going anywhere until you at least tell me what’s going on so I can talk you down off the proverbial ledge.”

“What do you mean again?” Emir is annoyed at his friend and doesn’t hide it. “You act like …”

“Like you’re always mad at her?” Zafer finishes. “That’s because you always are. And it always turns out to be for no reason. How have you not yet learned? There has been a grand total of zero times that Reyhan has been guilty of whatever you’re blaming her of.”

“This time is different,” Emir says. “This time I have proof.”

He pulls out the document he found in his office - the one with the picture Masal drew on the back - and slides it across the desk for Zafer to see. How strange that a simple piece of paper used to display a happy family is about to be the very thing that tears his family apart.

“I found that document. It gives Reyhan company shares,” Emir explains.

“Okay. I’m confused,” Zafer admits. “This is bad because …”

“Look at the date,” Emir points out. “It was two days before the wedding. That means Reyhan only married me for money.”

“Ahh. I see,” Zafer says. “This upsets you because you think it’s proof that you’re alone in your feelings. You’re disappointed to find out she hasn’t fallen in love with you the way you’ve fallen in love with her.”

“Love? What are you talking about? What love? You’re crazy. I’m not in love with her,” Emir insists, almost too insistently. And he’s unable to look Zafer in the eyes. “I’m just disappointed to find out she’s just another gold digger. She pretends to be so innocent, so naive. But really, she’s just as manipulative and calculating as any of the other women who have tried to be with me because I’m rich.”

“Who? Reyhan? You seriously believe that?” Zafer asks incredulously. “She doesn’t have a deceitful or dishonest bone in her body. I think you know this by now.”

“I thought I did,” Emir shrugs. “She really has a way of making me believe what she’s saying. Something in her eyes is just so … earnest. But what if it’s all just a game? What if she fooled my father as well? Why else would he have given her those shares?”

“Okay, clearly more has happened than you just getting your hands on this document,” Zafer says, tapping his finger on the cursed paper. “Why don’t you start at the beginning and tell me everything. We’ll figure this out. Because what you’re saying just doesn’t make sense. Things were changing between you two. You were getting closer. And I was sure you two were on your way to making me an uncle. The visit with Masal gave you baby fever, my friend. And you may not realize it, but your eyes light up whenever you see Reyhan. What changed?”

“Everything changed. In the blink of an eye,” Emir says with a heavy sigh. “Those days with Masal seemed like the start of something good for us. And you’re right. Seeing Reyhan with Masal really did something to me. I could actually see myself having children with her.”

If Emir is perfectly honest, that happened long before Masal’s visit. He began to see Reyhan differently when they faced death together. When she was kidnapped - when he was shot saving her from her kidnapper - something inside of him just clicked into place. She had taken care of him and they had shared their makeshift bed that night, the first time since their wedding night. It had somehow felt right to him. Her warmth. Her scent. Her weight against his side. It kept him tethered to life when the pain and blood loss was trying to pull him to the other side. He had lived for her.

And then Erzurum happened. That’s when he knew. Seeing her with that baby in her arms had filled him with such joy and hope for their future. He’s never known peace like that. At that moment, he realized he actually did love her. Telling her wasn’t an option, however. He didn’t want to scare her. But from that point on, he was determined to show her how he felt until she was as in love with him as he was with her. So how did things go so terribly wrong?

“I don’t know what happened,” Emir tells Zafer. “One minute we were happy, the next we weren’t. I had this paper in my hands and suddenly all the pieces fell into place. It became perfectly clear she only married me for money.”

“No, something must have happened,” Zafer pushes. “Because why would you even get suspicious about your father giving Reyhan company shares? She is your bride, after all. It’s normal she’d get something like this.”

“I don’t know,” Emir shrugs. “I guess it was the little disagreement we had with my mother earlier that day. I took Reyhan’s side and it annoyed my mother. She told me that Reyhan couldn’t be trusted. That she was only with me for the money. That soon I’d see her real face.”

Zafer gives him a confused look.

“That’s weird. Was the fight about money? Has Reyhan ever done anything up to that point to make you think she’s only interested in money? Or even in money at all?”

Emir thinks about what Zafer is asking and only frowns when he can’t come up with an answer. Reyhan has actually been quite the opposite. She even tried to refuse the credit card his father had given her.

Zafer takes his silent pondering as agreement and continues.

“So don’t you think it’s odd that your mother would accuse Reyhan of only wanting money with nothing to justify the accusation, and then you suddenly find this mysterious document out of nowhere that seemingly proves that very thing?”

“Maybe,” Emir reluctantly agrees.

“If your mother had never said anything about Reyhan being out for money, would you have even thought twice about this document?”

“What are you trying to say?” Emir asks, losing his patience. “Are you saying my mother set this whole thing up?”

“No, I’m just saying that maybe this is all just a misunderstanding,” Zafer corrects him. “A coincidence, maybe. What did Reyhan say about this document? How did she explain it?”

Emir just looks away. He doesn’t want Zafer to see the guilt in his eyes.

“You didn’t ask her about it, did you? How about your dad? Did you ask him? Of, Emir, of!” Zafer sighs in exasperation when he realizes Emir can’t answer this question either.

“What else was I supposed to think?” Emir asks. “She won’t ever admit why she married me. This seems to be the reason.”

Zafer just shakes his head and mutters “unbelievable” under his breath. He picks up the paper to give it another good study.

“Do you know if Reyhan even knows this document exists? There’s no signature anywhere. Wouldn’t a document like this have a signature? And if this was put together before your wedding, why isn’t her maiden name on here?”

Zafer is right, Emir realizes. These are questions he never considered. It doesn’t necessarily make Reyhan innocent, but maybe he jumped the gun a bit on punishing her as if she were guilty.

“I have one last question for you.” Zafer waits until he has Emir’s full attention before continuing. “Say this is exactly what you think it is. Say Reyhan agreed to marry you and received these company shares in return. Say she really did marry you for money. If I’m not mistaken, your reasons for marrying her weren’t exactly noble. You married her as a way to get back at your father and prove him wrong. You planned on divorcing this girl within a couple months, even after having made her your wife in truth. Emir, what if she had gotten pregnant? What if there was a child? What future prospects do you think she’ll have as a divorced woman? I know these are modern times, but what about the men who only care about virginity? You took that away from her just to make a point with your father. How is your reason for marrying her more justifiable than her reason for marrying you? How do you dare sit there and judge her? And if I know you, punish her as well.”

Emir winces when he thinks about said punishment. He realizes now that nobody deserves to be treated how he treated Reyhan. He can’t help but remember the look on her face when he gave her the check and told her it was payment for her services. Like she was some kind of whore.

“What have I done?” he whispers, more to himself than anything. But Zafer hears him anyway.

“You need to talk to her and make this right if necessary,” Zafer tells him. “I don’t know what’s happened between the two of you, but going by the look on your face, it was nothing good. And you’re going to have to do a lot of groveling to undo the damage.”

As usual, Zafer is right. Emir is actually afraid he may have already left their situation unaddressed for too long. The past four days have been one long session of torture. He’s been avoiding her and the room since she tore up his check. The first few days he stayed at work until very late, coming home only to shower and change. But he knows he can’t do that much longer because his mother will have something to say about it.

He has to admit, despite being so hurt by her, he misses Reyhan. He misses seeing her. He misses hearing her voice. Smelling her scent. It’s permeated the room since she’s moved in. Four days without it has him longing for her.

“But seriously, Emir,” Zafer continues. “If this document is what you think it is, if she did in fact marry you for money, would that be a deal breaker? I mean, you didn’t want to marry her, but all that has changed and you’ve fallen for her anyway. And now you’re about to lose her. Why not make her fall in love with you instead? Don’t think of this as a setback. Think of it as a challenge. Don’t be so quick to let her go.”

Does he want to lose her? The fact that he didn’t even bother to deny Zafer’s claim that he’s fallen for Reyhan is his answer. Because it’s true: he has fallen for her. And he can’t lie: his heart broke a little when he saw her walking away from him. He can admit now that he didn’t want her to leave. But his anger, and his pride, kept him from asking her to stay. He can only be grateful she came back on her own. But he can’t let his pride be a part of this right now. He can no longer just sit back and do nothing. That decision made, he knows what he has to do.

“Where are you going?” Zafer asks, confusion on his face when Emir takes the document and stands up from his desk.

“You’re right. I need to at least talk to her about this …. Okay, about a lot of things,” Emir adds when he gets a pointed look from Zafer. “Our communication is lacking.”

“Just don’t play with her anymore, Bro. Reyhan’s a nice girl. You know that in your heart. Don’t blame her because she doesn’t love you the way you want her to. You haven’t exactly been Prince Charming to her. You haven’t exactly given her a reason to love you. Maybe you should change that.”

Emir just nods before walking out the door. He has to admit, Zafer raised good questions. The main point is that he just doesn’t know anything. He didn’t ask any questions. He just made assumptions. His mother put it into his head that Reyhan was only using him for money. Before that day, he never got that impression about Reyhan. Maybe his mother had been mistaken. Why did he even listen to her?

From what he’s seen of Reyhan in the few months he’s known her is that money is the last thing she thinks about. She’s never wanted anything material from him. All she’s ever wanted has been kindness and mutual respect. He should have at least given her a chance to explain. They don’t know each other. But how can they get to know each other without talking through issues when they come up?

He hurries to his car and can only hope he isn’t too late to fix this. He hopes his pride hasn’t caused him to lose possibly the best thing that’s ever happened to him.


	2. Chapter 2

The ringing phone wakes her from a deep sleep and when she rolls over to check it, she moans when the motion leaves her body wracked with pain. By the time she gets the phone in her hand, the ringing has stopped and she sees a _Missed Call_ notification on the screen.

“Emir!” Her eyes widen in shock at the caller ID, but even that movement causes pain. So she hits the button to listen to the voicemail and closes her eyes against the ache.

_“Listen, Reyhan. I just want to apologize. I was unfair to you and I’d really like to discuss everything. Can we please talk? I’m on my way home now. We can go to dinner or something. We can get out of the mansion so that we can be alone and get everything out in the open.”_

Dinner? He wants to take her out? She’s a little excited, but also a lot wary. The last time he took her to dinner, they ended up at the beach. And that didn’t end well. At all. It was a disaster, actually. And he’s spent the past four days hating and avoiding her. The idea of going out to dinner again worries her more than a little. Can she trust he won’t make her feel like a fool again?

But he is right about getting out of the mansion. Something about this place confuses his mind and makes it hard for them to connect. Every time they seem to take one step forward in building trust in this marriage, something happens to make them go four steps backwards. That _‘something’_ is usually his mother. Cavidan hated her from the moment she saw her. Nothing has changed. Reyhan has a bad idea that whatever happened this last time is also because of Cavidan. But as usual, there’s nothing she can do except try to prove her innocence to Emir and pray that she can get through to him.

But to get through to him, she has to see him. He’s been conspicuously absent of the past few days. She has to admit, though, that she hasn’t exactly made herself available either. If she’s honest with herself, she’s been hiding in this room almost since she walked into it. He hurt her. And he disappointed her. All in all, everything just made her so tired. Getting out of bed was the last thing she wanted to do. But it’s time now. Time to face him. Time to put this behind them. And hopefully, time to try taking another step forward. No matter how afraid she is, she has to go to this dinner with Emir.

She sits up to get out of bed and her head starts spinning. She takes a few moments to try to get her balance before attempting to get up again. She started feeling tired a few days ago. She thought she was just a little down about what had happened with Emir. She just wanted to stay curled up in bed wallowing in self pity for a while. The more he avoided her, the more upset she got and the more she stayed in bed. She didn’t even notice that she’s actually sick.

She puts a hand to her forehead and wonders if she has a fever. It’s hard to tell. Her skin has that achy feel it gets when she gets a fever, so she probably does. Her body also aches, especially her head. She’s had a headache that hasn’t gone away for two days. And her heart feels like it’s about to beat out of her chest. She catalogs her symptoms, but can’t make a diagnosis. She probably just has the flu.

“Bathroom,” she decides. She’ll go to the bathroom and get the thermometer and pain reliever. If she has a fever, she’ll just tell Emir dinner will have to wait. If not, the pain reliever should help with her headache.

When she finally pulls herself out the bed and makes her first step, pain shoots from her foot all the way up through her whole body.

“Ouch!” she winces, sitting back down so that she can take a look at it. She sees several cuts on the bottom of her foot. Angry and red cuts that she vaguely remembers getting on the beach that day. She had cleaned and dressed them, but not immediately when she got home. She was too preoccupied with trying to figure out why Emir was angry. It wasn’t until after she returned home from her aborted runaway attempt that she’d thought to take care of them. They must have gotten infected.

“This is the last thing I need,” she mutters to herself as she limps to the bathroom, trying to ignore the edges of darkness attempting to creep into her vision. She gets about halfway to her destination before she realizes she isn’t going to make it. Her body starts swaying and it’s a struggle to keep her eyes open. She barely has enough time to make out the figure approaching her before she loses the battle completely and the darkness finally takes her under.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“Reyhan?”

Emir makes a running dive and manages to catch her as she faints. His heart stops at the sight of her unconscious body in his arms. What’s happened to her in just a few days? Her skin is so pale that it’s almost translucent. It makes the dark circles under her eyes stand out all the more. He brushes her hair out of her face and notices how hot her skin is. He presses his lips to her forehead just to be sure.

“Fever,” he mutters to himself before carefully lifting her up into his arms. She’s burning up and she’s collapsed. This isn’t good. He realizes he has to get her to a hospital.

“Hold on, Sweetheart. I’m going to get you some help.”

He yells for Sefer to start the car. There’s no time to wait for an ambulance. He has to get her to the hospital immediately.

“Oğlum? Kızım? What’s going on?” Melike asks, running into the room at the sound of Emir’s shouts. She stops abruptly, in shock at seeing an unconscious Reyhan in his arms. “What’s happened to her?”

“I don’t know. She just passed out as soon as I walked into the room,” he explains as he races towards the door.“Was she like this earlier? How long has she been sick?”

“I don’t know,” Melike shrugs. She falls in step right alongside Emir, taking one of Reyhan’s hands in hers. “She’s so warm! When did she get this fever? She’s been closed up in the room for the past few days. She hasn’t left the bed much. I should have checked on her sooner.”

Emir can’t help but think the same thing. This is all his fault. He let his pride keep him away from her and now she’s paying the price.

“Emir? What’s happened?”

A panicked Suna meets them at the door. Emir doesn’t have time to explain. He just tells her that Reyhan is sick and that he’s taking her to the hospital. After promising to keep her updated on their status, he runs to the car Sefer has pulled around.

“Hang on,” he whispers to Reyhan. “You are not leaving me. I won’t let you.”

His heart pounding in fear, a small part of him wonders just when Reyhan became so important to him. He has no answer. Just like he has no answer to the question of what he would do without her. If he had only figured this out four days ago, then Reyhan wouldn’t be in the situation she’s in right now.

_But she’s alive_ , he reminds himself. As long as she’s breathing, there’s hope. He’ll be able to make it up to her. And if she ever forgives him, he has no plans of losing her. Not now that he realizes how much he lo-….

He has to stop that train of thought. He’s not ready to admit what his heart has known almost since the moment he first met her. He’ll just admit that he _cares_ more about her than everyone realizes. A lot more. And the thought of losing her terrifies him.

When they get to the hospital, Reyhan is immediately taken for an initial examination. After what seems like forever, a doctor comes out to speak with Emir and Melike.

“Our first priority was the fever and getting it down,” the doctor starts. “We’ve started her on some intravenous fluids and medication to lower her temperature and to help with her dehydration. But the temperature is an indication of some sort of infection. We found infected cuts on her feet. Has she been to the beach recently? We found sand in the cuts.”

“A couple of days ago,” Emir explains. “We had dinner and were barefoot for awhile. She must have gotten the cuts there. I should have paid more attention. She’s not used to the beach. It was the first time she had ever been to one. I should have made sure she was more careful. This is all my fault.”

“It’s not your fault,” Melike tells him, trying to comfort him.

But Emir can’t make himself believe her. She doesn’t know how he just left Reyhan at the beach all on her own. He should have made sure she got home safely.

“She’s right, Emir Bey,” the doctor agrees. “Things like this just happen. But unfortunately in this case, the infection set in quickly and then moved into her bloodstream. That’s going to make it harder to treat. Once sepsis sets in, which it has in your wife’s case, it’s no longer a simple matter of antibiotics.”

“I don’t understand,” Emir frowns. “What are you doing for her?”

“Treating the fever and infection as best we can for now. And keeping her comfortable,” the doctor adds. “If the sepsis progresses, she may start to lose function of her vital organs.”

Emir pales visibly as his knees buckle. It takes everything in him to stay on his feet. Melike isn’t as lucky. He catches her as she begins to lose her balance. It’s his reminder that he has to stay strong.

“Can we see her?” Emir manages to ask after clearing his throat, the words getting stuck for some reason.

“She’s still unconscious, which is probably for the best. And we need to limit her exposure to anyone until we can get the infection under control. In a few hours if she’s more stable, we’ll allow a short visit. _Geçmiş olsun_.”

The doctor leaves Emir and Melike there in shock. Reyhan is usually so vibrant, so healthy. It’s hard to imagine her as sick as she is now.

“She’ll be fine,” Melike says, patting him on the arm. Emir is disheartened to realize she doesn’t sound so sure of that. “All we can do now is pray.”

“This is all my fault,” Emir says again, still blaming himself. “I’d been avoiding her. Being my usual stubborn self. Why didn’t I make sure she got home from the beach safely? Why didn’t I notice she had cuts on her feet? Four days, Melike abla. I didn’t speak to her for four days. And all that time, this was happening to her.”

“Emir …” Melike starts, intending to comfort him. But she’s interrupted when a pale Hikmet steps from around the corner.

“What have you done to that girl?” he asks, wide eyes staring at Emir. “What have you done?”

“Baba, I …”

“No, I heard you. She’s been sick for days and you didn’t notice?”

“Baba, if you just …”

“How could you be so cruel? How could you be so heartless? So irresponsible? You haven’t learned anything in these past couple of months. I thought you would grow up and learn to take responsibility for your actions. But you’ve learned nothing.”

Emir can’t really say anything to defend himself. His father is right about almost everything he’s saying. Emir _was_ cruel. He _was_ heartless. And he was irresponsible. He let his pride stop him from realizing a truth that is now slapping him in the face.

“You’re right, and I’m sorry,” Emir admits. “But this has been a wake up call. I need to be a man and step up. I may not have been there before, but I’m here for her now. Reyhan is my wife and I accept that.”

“Oh how big of you,” Hikmet says, the sarcasm dripping from his angry words. “But you’re about two months too late. I see now that I made a mistake in bringing Reyhan here to you. There’s no saving you.”

The verbal jabs feel almost like a physical punch to Emir and he’s stunned into silence.

“Get out of here. I can’t even look at you anymore.”

“Baba?”

“Go! It’s what you’ve been doing for the past four days anyway. She doesn’t need a husband like you. You don’t deserve a wife like her.”

The look on Hikmet’s face leaves no room for an argument. And it’s clear he has no idea he’s breaking his son’s heart.

“Emir,” Melike says to diffuse the situation. “Come with me.”

She takes him by the arm and pulls him down the hall, away from Hikmet. Emir goes easily, still too much in shock to resist her.

“Listen, Oğlum,” she says quietly. “Things are tense. Your father is just worried about Reyhan the same way we are. Give him some space.”

“I’m not leaving my wife,” Emir insists.

“I’m not suggesting that. Just some time and space. Go home and rest for a bit,” Melike suggests. “Reyhan is going to be here for awhile. So maybe get some things from the room for her that will make her feel more at home. Things like her favorite sleep shirt. And her mother’s photo. That will make her happy when she wakes up.”

Emir doesn’t want to go, but Melike is right. And if he’s honest, his father is right too. He really doesn’t deserve a wife like Reyhan. But from this moment on, Emir is determined to come to terms with how he feels about her and to be a man that she can love. This sudden illness has opened his eyes to the gift he’s been given. And for the second time that day, he makes a vow to himself not to lose her.


	3. Chapter 3

“Emir!”

The first person he sees when he gets home is Suna. She meets him at the front door and follows him down the hall to his room.

“How’s Reyhan?” she asks him. “I was so worried about her. She looked so pale and still when you carried her out of here.”

Emir gives her a small smile before bending to kiss the top of her head. He believes that Suna really cares about Reyhan. The two have gotten really close and seem to love each other. Who is he kidding? The love is real, from both sides. Suna and Reyhan have become true sisters. And it’s not just Suna. Everyone loves Reyhan. How has he been so blind this whole time at how good of a person she is?

“She’s going to be happy to know you’re thinking of her,” Emir tells her. “But she’s going to be in the hospital for a bit. She got some cuts when we went to the beach and those cuts got infected and made her sick. She’ll be fine in a few days.”

Emir tries a smile to convince Suna he’s telling the truth. Fortunately she believes him. Because he just doesn’t have the strength right now to explain to her just how sick Reyhan really is. He can only pray that he won’t ever have to have that conversation with Suna. She would also be devastated if anything were to happen to Reyhan. And once again, Emir sees how much his wife has come to mean to the entire family.

“Emir, Oğlum. You’re home.”

Well, almost the entire family. He gives the same fake smile to his mother as she comes up to them. She’s the one person in this house who doesn’t seem to like Reyhan very much. He never thought about it before, but it’s curious to him now.

“How about we have coffee together, Son?” Cavidan suggests. “It’s been awhile since we’ve been able to just sit and talk.”

He tilts his head and just stares at her, not really believing what he’s hearing. She expects him to sit and have coffee when his wife is in the hospital? Maybe she doesn’t know.

“Not tonight, Anne. I need to get back to the hospital soon,” he explains.

“Your father and Melike are there. Why do you have to be there too?” Cavidan asks, the frustration evident in her voice. “I swear that girl wants all the attention all the time.”

“Anne! What has gotten into you?” a horrified Suna wants to know. “Reyhan is in the hospital and you can’t even bother to ask how she’s doing. Instead, you try to keep Emir from getting back to her just so he can have coffee with you. How are you so selfish?”

Suna maneuvers her chair around Cavidan and zips off to her own room, leaving Emir and Cavidan alone.

“The nerve of that girl to talk to me like that!” Cavidan huffs. “I bet it’s Reyhan’s influence on her. Your sister has been extra surly since you got married to her. The sooner we get rid of her the better. Then this family can go back to normal.”

Cavidan just shakes her head and walks off. Emir notes that she still didn’t ask about Reyhan.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

When Emir walks back into the hospital, he’s a different man than when he left. He’s changed. Everything has changed. And right now, all he wants to do is see Reyhan. Nothing his father can do this time will stop him. His father has done enough as it is.

“How is she?” he asks Melike when she greets him. He wraps his arms around her, needing the comfort and realizing she needs it as well. He ignores the glare from his father.

“Better. Stable. The doctors say we can go in and see her soon.” Melike has to pause to wipe away her tears. “They say she appears to be waking up. Our prayers have been answered.”

Relief rushes from him at the sound of the good news. Still, he won’t feel completely at ease until he can see her. Not after what he’s learned. He finally looks over to meet his father’s gaze. The man who started this whole thing. From a selfish perspective, Emir can’t help but be thankful his father forced this marriage. Despite all of Emir’s efforts to the contrary, he’s actually fallen for his unwanted wife. Just like his father predicted. But at what cost to Reyhan? He can’t be selfish any longer. He needs to be responsible and figure out what’s best for her. And sadly, being nowhere near any of them is probably what’s best for her.

“Did you bring the things I asked for from the house? Were you able to find everything?” Melike asks him, interrupting his stare off with his father.

“Yes,” Emir says, lifting the bag he’s holding so she can see. “I got the picture and a few other things. She has this hand cream she uses every night before she goes to sleep. I like the way it smells.”

He gives a shy smile and little shrug.

“You did good, Son,” Melike says. She cups his cheek with her hand and he bends down to let her kiss him. “I’ll go give this stuff to her nurse.”

Left alone with his father, Emir braces himself for the other man’s approach.

“You did what Melike asked. Now go,” Hikmet says. “I told you, you can’t be here. It’s no longer your place.”

“This is exactly where I’m supposed to be,” Emir counters. “Reyhan is my wife. And I’m not leaving her. You’ve more than done enough, Baba. I’m going to take care of her now.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hikmet asks, taken aback by Emir’s anger.

Emir just looks at him and thinks about all he’s learned. Just like Melike asked, he went home and got the personal things for Reyhan. He got the picture of her mother, but also found a box of things in a drawer. Opening it, Emir saw more pictures that he thought Reyhan would also like. But when he went to put it into the bag, it fell and everything flew across the floor. One of those things was her journal. That little green book he was so curious about when he saw her with it in Erzurum. Her book of secrets. The answers to all the questions he had about her. As it turns out, it ended up being a recounting of things he never imagined could be possible.

"Listen, honey. I am really sick. And it's incurable. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you by telling you about my condition. But I had to tell you so you could understand why I want this marriage to happen. Money can't buy everything. I may be leaving my family a fortune, but that's not going to be enough to bring them happiness or peace. That's why I want you to marry my son.”

Taking a closer look at his father, Emir can now see the truth to these words. His father isn’t well and hasn’t been for awhile. A lot of the anger starts to die down. They may be at odds, but he’s still his father.

“How sick are you?” Emir asks him. “This isn’t just your heart.”

Hikmet takes a sharp inhale, not expecting the question from Emir. His face pales a bit more.

“You used your illness to force her to marry me,” Emir tells him, remembering in detail every word from Reyhan’s journal. “She really didn’t want to, did she? But you just wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

Emir just nods when Hikmet refuses to say anything. He knows it’s true. It’s all in the journal.

"Mom, I need you now more than ever. I'll marry him because my uncle asked me to, but I never met him. I don't know him at all. Too bad you're not here to guide me, Mom. I know you love Uncle Hikmet as your own brother. You hate seeing him sad. But I have no idea what I'm being dragged into, Mom. I'm so scared. Don't resent me for leaving you behind, all right? I'll visit you often. It's so hard getting used to your absence.”

The journal was an eye opener. Emir never considered what she might be leaving behind. He knew her mother had just died, but he never thought about how that had affected her. And he never imagined his father would use someone’s grief in that way.

“Her mother had just died, Baba. You knew that. It couldn’t have been more than two months. She was still in mourning. And you used that to manipulate her. You knew you were all she had left in the world and you used your illness to force her into a marriage neither of us wanted. Then you made her take an oath, an oath that superseded any vow we made to each other. Do you know how hard things have been for us because of that oath? Do you know the vows we couldn’t keep to each other because of that oath to you?”

“You’re blaming me?” Hikmet asks defensively.

“No,” Emir sighs. “I’m responsible for my own actions. This is all on me. I didn’t treat her the way she deserved to be treated. I took my anger on you out on her. I blamed her for things that weren't her fault. And because of the oath she made to you, she just took it. Everything I ever said or did, she just accepted it as the price she had to pay for your happiness. Everything Anne did or said, she kept it all to herself.”

“Your mother?” Hikmet asks, surprised to hear mention of Cavidan. “What does your mother have to do with this?”

Emir just closes his eyes, not even wanting to remember what he read in the journal. But knowing that his father needed to know at least part of it.

“The first day Reyhan got here, before we even knew about your marriage plans, my mother started tormenting her. She started out by ordering Nigar to burn all of her belongings. Everything she brought with her from Erzurum went up in flames. She was only able to barely save that one picture of her mother.”

That was the first, but not the last, of his mother’s tricks. Once Reyhan married him, Cavidan ramped up the … well, abuse is the best word for it. Slamming her head into the wall and then making Reyhan apologize was diabolical. But he strongly suspects she played a big part in Emir seeing that document about the company shares. A document he now knows is a forgery. Zafer tracked down the attorney who initially drafted the document. He confirmed that Hikmet ordered it after the wedding. It was meant to be a gift for Reyhan after six months of marriage.

Basically it’s looking like his mother had the document altered to set Reyhan up to look like a gold digger, knowing good and well how Emir would react. And Emir had fallen right in line with her plans. With all her plans. But no more. He’s not going to let his mother play him anymore. He’s just tired of everything. His mother’s treachery. His father’s high handedness. For once, he just wants the time to be ‘Emir and Reyhan’ and see what happens when it’s just the two of them.

“I know you’re mad, Baba. I know you think I’ve done Reyhan wrong. But the fact is, we’ve all done her wrong. Neither of us protected her the way we should have. But I’m going to do right by her now. No offense, but you need to take care of your own wife and your own household. Anne has gotten out of hand. I’m not going to let her hurt Reyhan anymore. Reyhan is my wife and I’m not going to let anyone take her away from me. Not even you.”

Hikmet’s face turns red and he looks ready to explode. But he’s distracted when his phone starts ringing.

“My lawyer. I have to take this.”

Emir just nods. Zafer warned that the lawyer would be contacting Hikmet about the forgery. Zafer will be working with them to figure out who did this and how. Emir doesn’t really care anymore. He has other things to worry about.

“Emir bey? Your wife is awake now,” the nurse says when she walks over to him. “She’s asking for you.”

A huge smile comes to his face at the news. Maybe things are finally starting to look up for them. Maybe there’s hope after all that things will be alright.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan wakes up and has no idea where she is or how she got there. She slowly blinks her eyes open and looks around the room. Not the room at the mansion. She quickly realizes it’s a hospital room. She’s in the hospital. She remembers feeling bad earlier, but she guesses she was worse than she thought.

“What happened?” she asks when a nurse comes into view. She tries to sit up in bed, but needs the nurse to help her.

“You’re awake, Reyhan hanim! That’s good. You’ve been asleep for awhile and have been making your family very worried,” the nurse says as she further adjusts the pillows behind Reyhan’s back.

She is an older woman, the nurse. With a very pleasant, maternal look to her and an appealing nature. Reyhan finds herself wanting to sink into her warmth for comfort. She misses having a mom.

“But what happened?” she asks again, still confused why she’s there.

“Just some cuts on your feet, Canım. They got infected and it’s made you really sick. But that handsome husband of yours rushed you here and we’re fixing you up as we speak.”

“He’s here?” For some reason that surprises Reyhan. But it’s a pleasant surprise.

“He’s out there,” the nurse laughs. “Irritating my other nurses asking if you’re awake yet every five minutes, trying to get back here to see you even more often. He really loves you.”

Love? Is it really possible?

“Okay, sweetie. We’re done here for now. You get some rest. Is there anything you need before I go?”

No matter what’s happened between them, Reyhan can’t lie to herself. Being his wife has become far more than just duty. She’s gotten attached to him. And the thought that he may feel the same brings tears to her eyes. Tears of joy. But also tears of fear. Of doubt.

“Emir,” she says after a moment to think. She’s decided she’s not going to let that fear and doubt take hold. She’s going to let her heart lead her. “I need Emir.”


	4. Chapter 4

Emir rushes towards Reyhan’s room, only to be stopped by the nurses instructing him to get into protective gear … gloves, mask, gown, covering for his head and feet.

“She’s still in a delicate situation,” the nurses had explained as he quickly put on whatever they gave him. “This is to help keep her safe.”

“Emir bey,” the doctor calls to him just before he goes inside. “Don’t tire her. Or put too much stress on her. She needs to stay as calm as possible. Her heart rate is still accelerated and we’re concerned about the effect on her body.”

He nods at the doctor’s advice, but he’s too focused on getting to her. He’ll get more details from the doctor later about all that. Right now, he just wants to see her. He needs to make sure she’s really okay.

He finally makes it to her room. He gives her a tentative smile that she can’t see behind the mask, but he can’t help but be happy to see her awake. He was worried about her. He sits next to her bed and takes her hand, relieved when her momentary shock of him touching her is replaced by her own smile. He likes that she seems as happy to see him as he is to see her.

“How are you?” he asks.

“Good … now that you’re here.”

His heart gives an unexpected leap in his chest at her shy words. It’s almost as if there was a physical barrier preventing him from really seeing her before. And now it’s gone, and he can’t help but see how precious she is and how lucky he is to have her. It’s like he’s seeing her for the first time.

“I’m here for good. I’m not leaving you anymore,” he promises. “And I won’t let you leave me. We’re going to work this out and we’re going to be fine, okay? There’s a lot we need to talk about. Starting with an apology from me.”

“Emir,” she says, lifting a finger to cover his lips to try to stop him from talking. But she lets out a little _yip_ of surprise when he kisses her finger. He’s finding it impossible to hold back anymore.

“You scared me,” he admits. “Falling into my arms like that terrified me, Reyhan. I had no idea what was wrong with you. All I knew was that I had to get you here immediately. And that if I had been there for you in the first place, none of this would have happened.”

“Can you tell me why any of this is happening?”

He knows she’s asking about more than why she’s in the hospital. She wants to know about before. When things were so bad between them. That disastrous beach date that still makes him shudder. How could he have been so horrible to her?

“I can and I will,” he nods. “I’ll tell you everything when the time is right. I promise. We need to get better at communication. Learn a new way. We weren’t working before because we weren’t talking to each other. I admit that I was actively pushing you away, but you were also keeping yourself apart from me.”

She looks down, embarrassed at having him realize the way she had distanced herself from him. He moves a finger to her chin and tilts her face up so that she’s looking at him again.

“See? Running away again,” he points out. “But it’s okay. I get it. I now know the reason for that distance. And now more than ever, I’m so sorry for how I treated you before. There’s no excuse for it. Neither of us wanted to be married. But I punished you for something that wasn’t your fault.”

“Where is this coming from?” she asks curiously.

He sighs to gather his courage. Then he stands and walks over to the bag of her things the nurse brought in before. He reaches inside and pulls out her journal.

“Melike abla asked me to bring some of your things. I saw this and... I read it,” he confesses. “I didn’t plan on reading it. But your stuff fell and it was open when it landed. I couldn’t resist.”

“You read my journal? My private journal? The one I specifically told you not to? Emir!”

As expected, she’s mad. Really mad. But totally unexpected is his reaction. His heart gives that little leap again. He can’t stop his smile and he’s again grateful she can’t see it under his mask.

“You’re really cute when you get mad,” he says, realizing he’s possibly risking his life by saying it out loud. But he can’t help teasing her. He can’t help a lot of his reactions to her anymore. It’s like the floodgates have been opened.

Her eyes narrow to slits and she just glares at him. He seals his lips tight to keep from saying how even cuter she is now.

“Come here,” she says, and he slowly takes the few steps back to her bed.

“Ow!” he laughs when she punches him on the arm. She’s still too weak for the punch to have had any power behind it. But he finds he likes teasing her. “What was that for?”

“That’s for being a jerk and reading my journal,” she says. And just as suddenly as the anger came, it all melts from her face and she gives him a small smile instead. “But I can see that what you read has changed you. And now it’s my turn to apologize for keeping all of that from you. I made it hard for you to trust me. I made it hard for us to have a real marriage.”

His heart melts at her sincerity. But her answer to his next question will make or break them.

“Is that what you want? A real marriage?” he asks tentatively. He's surprised to find he’s nervous at what she’ll answer. Because more than anything, he wants her to say yes. But he’s given her so much misery since the day they met. She deserves more than him putting her on the spot like this. She deserves him to put his heart on the line. So that’s exactly what he does.

“Because it’s what I want,” he adds to take away any doubt from her mind. “I want a real marriage with you, Reyhan. I didn’t want this at first. I married you against my will. You know that. And I punished you everyday for what my father made us do. But none of this was your fault. You were just granting a dying man his final wish. So if this isn’t what you really want, I wouldn’t blame you if you said no.”

“Emir,” she says quietly, taking his hand in hers.

“No wait,” he interrupts, a pleading look in his eyes. “Let me finish.”

At her nod, he continues.

“You may have made a vow to my father, but we also made vows to each other when we got married. Those vows mean something and I’d like to keep them. I’d like to be a husband to you. I’d like to take care of you. Honor you. Cherish you.”

The blush in her cheeks is suddenly his favorite color in the world. He can’t help but point it out.

“You’re blushing,” he says with a smile. “You’re really beautiful, Reyhan. I don’t think I’ve ever told you.”

He can see the shock evident in her eyes. But she quickly recovers from the surprise.

“I see you’ve moved to the ‘sweet talking’ portion of this seduction,” she says, making his eyes widen in amusement when he realizes she’s teasing him. He decides he really likes a playful Reyhan.

“Is it working?” he asks just as playfully.

She just tilts her head and stares at him. Stares into his eyes. Something tells him this is the most important conversation they’ll ever have, even though it’s all being done in complete silence. Right now, it’s not words from their mouths, but words from their hearts.

“On the beach,” she starts. “Before things got terrible. You were happy. You were sincere. I could see it in your eyes.”

She doesn’t phrase it as a question, but he answers her anyway.

“It was the happiest I’d ever been in my life. But my ego and stubborn pride got in the way. And I ended up trying to hurt you as much as I thought you had hurt me.”

“But how? I didn’t do anything!” she insists.

“I know,” he says quickly, trying to make sure she stays calm. “I was tricked into thinking something terrible about you. But that doesn’t excuse how I treated you. Reyhan, I can’t apologize enough for that. And I’m going to work hard to make you trust and believe that I’ll never do anything like that again.”

“I do believe,” she tells him, reaching up to cup his cheek. “I know your eyes now. And I now know what they say to me. So my answer is yes.”

His confused look makes her smile.

“Yes, I want a real marriage with you, Emir Tarhun,” she clarifies. “I want this to be about us and not about my uncle’s request. But I mostly want to one day hear you tell me about that love I can see in your eyes.”

He takes a quick peek at the door and notes they’re still alone. He pulls his mask down and presses a kiss to her forehead, the gesture making a huge smile grow on her face. When he glances down at her, she has tears in her eyes. He wipes them away.

“Happy tears,” she explains. “I never thought this day would come. That I would feel this way. That you’d make me feel this way.”

He’s about to reach for her hand, the need to always be touching her growing stronger. But the door opens at that moment and his father, still angry, stands there glaring at him.

“What have you done to her now? She’s crying, Emir,” Hikmet growls. “I already warned you. I’m not going to let you hurt her anymore.”

“Dayı, it’s not what you think,” she tries to explain.

“No, sweetheart. It’s not what _you_ think,” he corrects her. “Emir never wanted to marry you. I think we all knew you two were reluctant for this marriage. But my son is cruel and he’s wicked and he’s been doing everything in his power to get rid of you.”

“Baba, what are you doing? Now isn’t the time for this. Reyhan and I …”

“I told you. None of this is no longer your concern. She is no longer your concern, not that she ever was,” Hikmet snaps at him before turning to Reyhan. “Kızım, I just spoke with the lawyers. As it turns out, Emir has been trying to divorce you. He’s even had papers drawn up.”

The machines alert Emir to Reyhan’s rising heart rate. He takes her hand and gives it a squeeze, making her look over at him. He cups her cheek and she leans into it. She settles a bit when she can see into his eyes, reassured by what she sees there.

“You’re fine. We’re fine,” he promises her, looking up at his father next. “Baba, now really isn’t the time. We need to make sure Reyhan stays calm.”

His tone is much calmer than he feels. But he has to hold everything inside for her sake. He’ll deal with his father later.

“I’m not going to let you fool her again, Emir. Don’t make this ugly. Just get out while we can keep this amicable,” Hikmet warns him. “The lawyers will come up with a fair divorce settlement and you won’t have to worry about setting her up to look like a gold digger.”

“What?” Reyhan asks, shocked at the accusation. “Emir, what is he talking about?”

Emir just glares at his father before turning back to Reyhan.

“Look at me,” he says to her, squeezing her hand again. “Relax for a minute and look at me.”

They take a couple of breaths together until her heart rate slows again. But he notices that it’s still erratic. He grabs her call button to summon the nurse.

“We just made promises to each other, remember? Things are going to be different from now on. We’re in this together,” he reminds her. He reaches up to wipe away a stray tear that’s falling down her cheek. He wants to yell at his father for making her doubt him, but he doesn’t want to make her feel any worse. His goal is to calm her down. “I promise we’ll talk about this later. Please trust me on this. We’re going to talk about everything later.”

“Just stop the games,” Hikmet says. “None of this is necessary. You’re just setting her up for heartbreak later. Just go, Emir. Get out of here.”

Emir glares at his father again just as the nurse comes inside.

“I think our patient needs rest,” she says, giving the monitors a worried glance. “Why don’t you both give her some space and let her get some sleep. I’m just going to give her something to help her calm down.”

“Forgive us,” Emir says with a false smile, trying to hide his anger at his father. “You’re absolutely right. She needs rest. We’ll give her some space. But can I stay until she falls asleep?”

The nurse is about to say no, not blind to the fight that was brewing when she entered. But she sees a desperate, pleading look on Reyhan’s face as she reaches out for Emir’s hand, so she allows it.

“Just you,” she agrees, pointing at Emir. “And just until she falls asleep. The doctor told you she needed to stay calm, but you two have done the opposite.”

Hikmet grudgingly leaves with the nurse while Emir stays with Reyhan.

“What was that all about?” Reyhan asks with a yawn, the drugs already taking effect.

“The story of our life, Canım… misunderstanding.” Emir sighs a frustrated sigh. “I promise I’m not trying to hide anything from you, but you need to focus on getting well. We will have plenty of time to discuss all of this once you recover. But for right now, I don’t want anything to hinder that.”

“And what you tell me will do that?” she asks warily.

“I won’t let it,” he assures her. But he isn’t totally sure. He can only hope for the best right now.

She lets out another yawn and her eyelids begin to droop. She’ll be asleep soon.

“I’m not going to lose you,” he whispers when he thinks she’s asleep. “Not when I just got you.”

He gets up as quietly as he can and goes to the door, giving her one last look before he leaves.

When she hears the door close, she smiles, feeling hope like she’s never felt before. She goes to sleep feeling a happiness she’s never felt before, giving her a reason to fight this sickness. Emir will be waiting on her when she emerges from this thing. As long as she has him, she can beat this. Happy dreams of peaceful days with giggling, dimpled children take over her mind, lulling her into a false sense of security … blinding her to battle ahead that can smash all those dreams into a million pieces. 


	5. Chapter 5

Emir waits until they get home to finally let loose on his father. The doctors had told them that sleep was the best medicine for Reyhan at the moment. So they left Melike at the hospital with her while they came home to rest for a bit. Emir didn’t want to leave her, but he knew he had things to say to his father that would be best not said in public.

“What are you trying to do, Baba?” Emir asks after a long awkward minute of them just staring at each other. “How could you say those things to her?”

“She deserves to know that truth about how you feel. About what you had planned.”

“And how do you know how I feel? Or what I have planned?”

Emir can see his father getting slightly nervous at the calm facade Emir is putting on. And honestly, a facade is all it is. Emir is furious. He’s livid. He can hardly see past his anger at how his father’s words and actions affected Reyhan. But he can’t be the same spoiled hot headed kid he’s always been. If he wants his father to believe he’s sincere about being a good husband to Reyhan, he needs to stay calm and make him understand he’s changed.

“I spoke with the lawyer. He said you’ve drawn up several sets of divorce papers,” Hikmet explains. “That tells me you have no intention of staying married to Reyhan. Not to mention the information the doctor gave you about that special clinic in Ankara that deals with Reyhan’s illness. What do you plan on doing? Shipping her hundreds of miles away to get her out of your hair? I’m not going to let you just throw her away like that. She deserves better.”

“He’s right,” Emir admits. “I’ve tried to divorce Reyhan on more than one occasion.”

Emir is grateful now she was so stubborn and so determined to stay married to him. He’s grateful she fought so hard, no matter the reason: a vow, an oath, a solemn promise made to a dying man. None of that matters. What matters now is that he has a chance to be with her and he’s not going to blow it this time.

“And the clinic will help her to heal. The doctor feels she’ll get a better, more specialized treatment there.”

“You should be ashamed of yourself,” Hikmet says, shaking his head at his son. “I can’t believe you …”

“Oh, I know,” Emir interrupts him. “You can’t believe anything good about me. You heard about the divorce papers. But did you hear about how she refused them? Tore them up in my face? And the most recent set? I tore those up myself weeks ago. I have no plans to divorce my wife, Baba.”

“But …” Hikmet sputters.

“And the clinic is the best place to help her. But I’m not just sending her, Baba. Reyhan and I are going to discuss it as an option. And if she agrees, then I’m going with her. We’ll be moving to Ankara for as long as it takes for her to get well.”

Emir just sighs and walks over to his father, putting his hand on his shoulder.

“Listen, Baba. I know this marriage got off on the wrong foot. But Reyhan and I have gotten to know each other a little better and this is what we both want. We just want the time and space to figure this thing out on our own. That can’t happen here.”

“Emir, I …. I don’t know what to say,” his father shrugs. “I saw red when I heard about how you had been treating her. I couldn’t believe you were the son that I had raised.”

“I was falling for her and didn’t want to face that fact,” Emir easily admits. He finds that the more he accepts his feelings, the easier it is to say it out loud. “I could see no reason for her to want to be married to me, and she wouldn’t tell me anything. No matter how much I asked. Her oath to you kept her silent.”

So frustratingly silent. He can recall every single time he asked her. And every time she said nothing. It’s crazy how the one thing his father wanted from this marriage was almost ruined because of the one very big condition he put on it. But Emir is beyond being angry at his father. Hikmet may have set it all in motion giving them an impossible obstacle to overcome, but Emir can only blame himself for his own actions. Now that he knows what he’s up against, he has a better chance at getting what he wants. And all he wants right now is for Reyhan to be happy.

“Anyway,” he continues. “I assumed she was just with me for money. It infuriated me that I was starting to feel things for her that she would probably never feel for me.”

He’s actually finding it liberating to be so open about his feelings for her. He’s really fallen in love with his wife. The realization is like a light bulb going off on top of his head. He almost pictures it and it makes him almost laugh. But he doesn’t because his father wouldn’t understand. But for the first time in a long time, his heart is completely happy. He just needs to convince his father so that he can get back to the hospital and convince his wife.

“So how do you explain the forged document about the shares transfer to Reyhan? How did you find out about this anyway? I was trying to make it a surprise for the two of you for later,” Hikmet wonders.

“I had nothing to do with it,” Emir says simply. “I’d ask your wife about that. She’s the one who planted the idea in my head that Reyhan was only after money. She’s the one who made sure I saw that document. She’s really the one who wanted Reyhan gone.”

Emir has yet to come to terms with any of that. All he knows is what he read in Reyhan’s journal and he finds it so hard to believe. Not that Reyhan would lie about any of it. He knows her enough to believe what she said in her journal is true. But he finds it hard to accept that his mother would do such terrible things to another human. He finds it hard to accept that any person would do such terrible things.

“All I know is that I’m done with her games. With all of these games. Reyhan never deserved to be the target of my anger or Anne’s wrath. For so long, she had no one to protect her. So that’s my mission now. To protect her and to give her the life she deserves. I can only hope and pray it’s the same life I want.”

“You really do love her,” Hikmet exclaims in amazement.

He really does. But Emir doesn’t tell him that. He just gives his father a cryptic smile. He’s not admitting anything until he can admit it to Reyhan. She deserves to be the first to hear that she’s the first woman he’s ever been in love with.

“I’m going back to the hospital to be with my wife,” is all he says instead.

The look of pride on his father’s face is a shock. And he realizes it’s because he’s never seen it before. He’s never given his father anything to be proud of. He hopes to never let him down as far as Reyhan is concerned. Because that would mean he’s also let Reyhan down. And that is no longer an option.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“Anne?”

Cavidan jumps when Suna sneaks up behind her. She had been standing to the door of Hikmet’s office with her ear pressed against it, desperately trying to hear what they were saying inside.

“Suna! Don’t scare me like that,” Cavidan says, her voice low to keep Emir and Hikmet from knowing she’s right outside the door. “What are you doing sneaking around like this anyway?”

“What are you doing eavesdropping on Baba and Abi?” Suna counters, raising an eyebrow in question at her mother.

“Suna,” Cavidan scowls, the tone of her voice warning.

“Fine, fine,” Suna says, lifting her hands in surrender. “I don’t even know why I bother anymore.”

Cavidan just sighs in frustration at her moody daughter’s retreat. She considers going back to try to listen again, but doesn’t want to get caught again. Besides, she heard just what she needed to hear.

_“I spoke with the lawyer. He said you’ve drawn up several sets of divorce papers,” Hikmet explains. “That tells me you have no intention of staying married to Reyhan. Not to mention the information the doctor gave you about that special clinic in Ankara that deals with Reyhan’s illness. What do you plan on doing? Shipping her hundreds of miles away to get her out of your hair? I’m not going to let you just throw her away like that. She deserves better.”_

_“He’s right,” Emir admits. “I’ve tried to divorce Reyhan on more than one occasion.”_

Suna caught her before she could hear any more. But she’s heard enough. She’s thrilled her plans have worked. Not only is Emir divorcing that girl, he’s also sending her halfway across the country. Cavidan couldn’t be happier. But if she works fast enough, she can get rid of that peasant sooner than that.

“Cemre dear,” Cavidan says into the phone after dialing her young accomplice’s number. “I need you to get to the hospital as soon as you can. I need you to have a little conversation with Reyhan. There are things she should probably hear and they would be so much better coming from you.”

Cavidan can’t hold in her smug smile. She’ll be finally getting that girl out of her life. Emir will thank her for freeing him from the prison of his father’s making. Then he’ll be able to marry someone far more suitable. By this time tomorrow, Reyhan should be gone forever and not even Hikmet will be able to do anything about it.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Flowers or no flowers? It’s the decision Cemre is currently going back and forth between. Flowers are a normal thing to take to someone in the hospital. But is she really in a “giving flowers” kind of relationship with Reyhan? No. That would make it seem like she’s trying too hard. Besides, she doesn’t feel like going through the extra trouble. She has her orders from Cavidan teyze … do whatever it takes to convince Reyhan that Emir doesn’t want her. Do whatever it takes to make the girl leave on her own. That’s all Cemre cares about.

She never dreamed this girl would still be here. She tried to drive her away from the beginning, even before the wedding. She thought the story about being childhood sweethearts with Emir and the lie that he wanted to marry her would have made Reyhan leave. But Cemre underestimated her. Reyhan was determined to marry Emir for reasons Cemre could never understand. She tried humiliating Reyhan at her birthday party. But that only made Emir defend the girl and Cemre was the one who ended up being humiliated. At that point, Cemre decided she couldn’t see Reyhan as anything less than an enemy.

Nothing up until now has seemed to work against Reyhan. Not lies. Not tricks. Even when they got lucky with that maniac Vural, who was only supposed to pretend to be Reyhan’s lover, but he ended up kidnapping her. Cemre was sure she’d never see Reyhan after that. But unfortunately Emir found her and rescued her, getting shot in the process. And that was just one more thing on the already long list of things Cemre hated about Reyhan. Sending her running today will be just the satisfaction she’s been craving. She can’t wait.

“Knock knock!” she says cheerfully as she pushes open the door to the hospital room and steps inside.

“Cemre?” Reyhan asks, clearly surprised to see her. It gives Cemre a zing of pleasure knowing she’s about to ruin this girl’s life.

“How are you, Canım? I had to rush right over as soon as I heard what happened to you. What a terrible thing. A blood infection? Such bad luck! But look at you. You seem to be on the mend.”

Cemre takes a seat in the chair and makes herself comfortable.

“I’m doing much better today,” Reyhan explains. “Rest and peace are the most important things for me right now.”

“Good for you. Rest and peace are important,” Cemre starts, silently thanking Reyhan for the opening she needed. “But I guess you’ll get plenty of that when Emir sends you to that clinic in Ankara for treatment. When are you leaving?”

“Clinic?”

“A top notch clinic, from what I hear,” Cemre continues, pretending not to notice Reyhan’s shock. Pretending she isn’t thrilled to have been the one to deliver this news. ”They’ll get you back on your feet and then you can decide if you want to stay in Ankara or go back to your village. After the divorce, there won’t be any point in you coming back here to Istanbul.”

“Divorce?”

This time the word comes out in a gasp and Reyhan’s face has gotten pale. Really pale. Cemre hates to admit it, but she’s actually a little concerned. Maybe this wasn’t the best time for this conversation. She doesn’t want to kill the girl. She just wants her to leave town.

“What divorce, Cemre?” Reyhan asks, the look in her eyes showing how panicked she is. “What are you talking about?”

“Your divorce. From Emir,” Cemre explains. “This shouldn’t be a surprise to you. That little dinner on the beach didn’t turn out exactly like you expected, did it?”

Reyhan just gasps again and Cemre knows she guessed right. She didn’t know exactly where Emir had taken her for their date, or how it ended. But she knows about the plans Emir had Yonca make for him. And she knows from Cavidan that Emir and Reyhan returned separately from the dinner and didn’t speak to each other for days afterwards. So putting together all the clues, she was able to take a chance and pretend she knows more than she actually does. Fortunately her gamble paid off.

“Emir is divorcing me? And sending me away to some clinic?”

“Emir’s place is with his family. With his work. You don’t expect him to leave his home and his job to take his ex-wife to a clinic halfway across the country, do you?”

She pauses for dramatic effect before putting on a shocked face.

“Oh, you actually did expect that! You had no idea about any of this. You poor dear.”

“I don’t believe any of this,” Reyhan says, starting to struggle to breath. She reaches a shaky hand for the water on the table next to her bed, but it goes crashing to the floor, splashing water in Cemre’s direction.

“Pay attention to what you’re doing, you klutz!” she snaps at Reyhan. Her shoes are suede and shouldn’t be getting wet. “You’re about to ruin my boots.”

But looking at Reyhan she can see that the spilled water is the least of her problems. She really seems to be in actual distress. The beeping on the heart monitor becomes impossible to ignore as the sounds come faster and faster. Reyhan’s heart is racing now and Cemre can’t imagine that’s good for her. Before she knows what’s happening, Reyhan goes rigid and falls back onto her pillow. Her body starts to shake and the violence of it all makes Cemre scream.

“Reyhan? Can you hear me?”

Cemre is as frozen as she was not too long ago when she pushed Reyhan into the pool not knowing the girl couldn’t swim. Reyhan almost drowned that day and Cemre couldn’t do anything. Cemre is ashamed to admit that she didn’t want to do anything that day. She was just going to leave it up to fate. Can she do the same now? Would she get away with it?

A nurse runs into the room and Cemre has her answer. She comes to her senses enough to realize this could get bad for her really quickly unless she does something.

“I don’t understand what happened to her,” Cemre says, not even having to fake the shock and horror in her voice. Whatever is happening with Reyhan is terrifying. But even more terrifying is the thought that Emir would find out about all of this. “We were just talking like friends do when she went silent and started shaking.”

Reyhan has gone still. Deathly still. And Cemre panics. She runs out of the room … and right into Emir.

“What’s going on?” he asks, the fear making his voice shake. “What were you doing in there, Cemre? What happened to Reyhan?”

“I don’t know,” Cemre cries, her emotions getting the better of her. _I’ve never seen anyone die before,_ she says to herself. She’s too in shock to realize she’s said it out loud.

A pain filled catches her attention. She looks up with Zafer’s shout catches her attention.

“Emir!” he calls to his troubled friend.

Cemre just manages to grab onto Emir’s arm when his legs stop supporting him. Zafer is there a second later on his other side and they both guide the distraught man to a bank of chairs against the opposite wall.

“What did you say?” Emir asks shakily, looking up at Cemre. “Dead? Is she … gone?”

“Don’t borrow trouble,” Zafer says, also looking at Cemre. Only the look in his eyes is a lot less friendly than she’s used to seeing. “I’m sure she’ll be fine. Let’s just wait and see what the doctor says.”

So they wait. 


	6. Chapter 6

_Your wife had a series of seizures_ , the doctor had said. _Her body seems to be preparing to shut down, system by system. The seizures were her mind’s way of putting her body into a self preservation mode of sorts._

He didn’t completely understand what the doctor was saying, the medical jargon competing with his grief. But he did understand one word: coma. They had put her into a medically induced coma to keep her body from shutting down further. To give her time to heal. It’s meant to help her. But it’s still a coma all the same. The word sticks in Emir’s throat and makes it hard for him to say anything. How did this even happen? He was just with her. They were just making plans for the rest of their lives. How is she now like this? Is this punishment for the way he’s been treating her since they married? If it is, then why is she the one being punished?

_“You’re just setting her up for heartbreak later. Just go, Emir. Get out of here.”_

It breaks Emir’s heart that that’s probably the last thing she remembers hearing. She started getting upset when his father had made that nasty accusation. Emir had tried to reassure her, but maybe she still had doubts. He can only pray he’ll get the chance to make things right with her. He has so much to make up for.

“She looks like she’s just sleeping,” Emir says, still trying to understand exactly what happened to Reyhan. She’s more critical than she was before, so now, no one is allowed inside her room. Not even Emir. So he’s forced to just look at her through the window. “How did this happen?”

He turns to a guilty looking Cemre and pins her with his glare.

“Why were you even in there?” he asks accusingly, willing to toss the blame on the easiest target. “What did you say to upset her?”

He knows he probably isn’t being fair to Cemre, but he’s just trying to make sense of it all. Reyhan was fine. Now she isn’t. And he has no idea why.

“Come on, Emir,” Zafer says, trying to calm his friend. “You can’t blame Cemre. The doctor says that sometimes this just happens with patients like Reyhan.”

Emir looks like he has something else to say on the matter, but he decides not to. Whatever happened has already happened. There’s no changing it. And there’s nothing he can do about anything right now. All he can do is get Reyhan the best help possible.

“I’m going to go talk to her doctor,” he tells his friends before leaving them standing there.

He told his father earlier about the clinic and how he was willing to move to Ankara with her for her treatment. But he thought he had some time to discuss that plan with Reyhan and get her input on the matter. He didn’t realize the decision would have to be made now and that it would be his alone. Or that it would be a matter of life and death for her.

_Don’t borrow trouble,_ Zafer had said earlier. And Emir is trying to take his advice, but it’s so hard. He’s terrified he’s about to lose his wife just when he was feeling like he was finally starting to know her. It’s not fair.

He needs to get himself together. He needs a clear head to think about what to do for Reyhan. He’s too emotional right now. He can’t speak with the doctor in this condition. He needs some air first. And some space. Maybe then he can deal with this situation.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Cemre watches Emir walk away. This has gotten out of hand. She never expected anything like this to happen. She went into that room to give Reyhan incentive to leave, not make her even more sick than she was to start with. Because now, they’re stuck with her.

“Stupid leech,” she mutters to herself, low enough so that Zafer doesn’t hear. “There’s no getting rid of her now.”

“Getting rid of who, Kızım?”

Cemre freezes, then groans at her lack of caution. It’s Hikmet Amca. She turns around to face him, hoping he didn’t hear what she had just said. She has to come up with something quickly to deflect. She holds up her phone.

“Just a silly message,” she claims before quickly changing the subject. “I’m glad to see you two have arrived. Emir is so stressed. He could use the support.”

“Where is he?” Hikmet asks her.

She breathes a sigh of relief that the topic has been successfully avoided.

“He went to talk to the doctor.” Cemre points down the hall.

“I’ll take you to the office,” Zafer offers, leading Hikmet down the hall. Leaving Cemre with Cavidan, who had reluctantly accompanied her husband to the hospital.

“I told you to get her to leave Emir, not kill her,” Cavidan says quietly, looking around to make sure no one is within ear shot. “What did you do to her?”

“Nothing!” Cemre says, her voice carrying.

Cavidan scowls and pulls her away from the room and down a different hall so that they can have some privacy and not worry about being overheard.

“Then what happened to her? Why is she like this?”

“Why does everyone care about her?” Cemre whines. “Do you know what it was like for me to be in there when she started having those seizures? I was terrified. It traumatized me. I’m not sure I’ll get over it.”

“Well, neither of us will be able to get over it if Emir finds out you told Reyhan about him planning to divorce her and send her to that clinic in Ankara.”

“You’re the one who told me to tell her!” Cemre screeches, causing Cavidan to cringe and look around again. She tries to hush Cemre, but Cemre just continues. “You’re the one who heard Emir say he was going to divorce her and send her away. You’re the one who told me to tell her that. You were wrong. Your plan backfired. And now, Emir has to stay with her out of guilt.”

“Well, what happened happened,” Cavidan says with a sigh. “There’s nothing we can do to change it. We’ll have to regroup and try something later to drive her away. The important thing now is to make sure this stays between us. If Emir finds out what we did, he’ll never forgive us. Now let’s get back before someone comes looking for us.”

They head back towards the room and run straight into Emir when they turn the corner. Cemre lets out a loud gasp. The look in his eyes let her know she won’t be as lucky this time. Unlike with Hikmet earlier, she’s sure Emir heard each and every word of this conversation.

“Emir. Oğlum. I thought you were with the doctor,” Cavidan says, pasting a smile on her face. “Cemre was just explaining to me about Reyhan. How is she, Son?”

Emir continues to just stare, his angry glare going from Cavidan to Cemre and then back again.

“One of you, explain to me what’s going on here. Now!” he growls.

Cemre flinches at his outburst and looks over his shoulder at possible avenues of escape. But his large body seems like it’s blocking the entire hallway and she realizes she has nowhere to go.

“What are you talking about, Son?” Cavidan asks, still trying to play off the whole thing and act like nothing's wrong. “You seem upset. Is it Reyhan? Has the poor dear taken a turn for the worst?”

If Cemre didn’t know better, she would believe the woman is actually concerned. But Cemre knows better and based on the look on Emir’s face, he does too.

“We didn’t mean anything by it,” Cemre finally confesses. “You seemed so unhappy being married to her. We just wanted to help you.”

“Help me?” Emir asks skeptically. “You tried to murder my wife to help me?”

“It wasn’t like that! We just thought it would be better if she left once she got better. That way you wouldn’t have had to be the ‘bad guy’ and send her away yourself,” Cemre explains.

Emir stares at them both again and Cemre is surprised to find herself terrified of him. She has to say something, anything. He has to forgive her. She won’t be able to live if he thinks badly of her.

“Emir …”

“That’s enough, Cemre,” he says, voice still cool and distant. “You’ve done what you came to do. You should go now. I have some things to say to my mother in private.”

Cemre wastes no time leaving.

“Son, I don’t know what you think you heard, but I can assure you it’s all a misunderstanding.”

“No, Mother. You are the only one who seems to be misunderstanding around here,” Emir says to her, tired of all her games. This is the first time he’s seen one up close and personal. The first time he’s caught her red handed. And for the first time, he can actually believe that all Reyhan wrote about his mother in her journal is true. For the first time, he can see what kind of woman his mother is.

“Whatever you’re thinking, you’re wrong. We weren’t trying to hurt Reyhan,” she insists. “On the contrary. We were trying to help her get out of a situation neither of you wanted to be in. Admit it. You wanted this girl out of our lives. I even heard you tell your father about your plans to divorce her. I just thought a nice, amicable parting would be better for both of you.”

A nice, amicable parting. It almost makes Emir laugh. How has he never seen the master manipulator hiding behind his mother’s face? Looking into her eyes, he can see that even she believes the story she’s telling him. She truly believes she’s done nothing wrong. No, that isn’t true. She’s just trying to make him believe she’s done nothing wrong. But she knows exactly what she’s doing. He has to remind himself of what he just heard her say.

_We’ll have to regroup and try something later to drive her away. The important thing now is to make sure this stays between us. If Emir finds out what we did, he’ll never forgive us._

She knows perfectly well she crossed the line. And what’s worse is that she plans to try again. He knows his mother well and nothing will stop her from getting her way. And what she wants is Reyhan gone. She’s not going to stop until she reaches her goal.

But what can he do? Nothing is going to change his mother. It’s going to be up to Emir to instead change the circumstances. He has to get out of this twisted little game his mother has decided to play with his life. It’s the only way his marriage can survive.

“I guess I should thank you,” he says after a long silence, needing the time to make a tough decision. But if he thinks about it, it wasn’t such a tough decision after all. It’s the only decision he could make to protect his wife, his marriage. His mother, her antics, made him finally see that.

“Thank me for what?” she asks warily, only becoming more confused when instead of answering, he just walks away. Someday she’ll find out she was responsible for him taking this step to grab his happiness. Not today, but someday.

“Emir!” she calls out, calling after him.

But he just keeps walking. He doesn’t stop until he reaches Reyhan.

“This is the only way,” he whispers to her through the glass. “The only way to protect you until you can protect yourself.”

“Sounds ominous.”

He turns around to find Zafer standing behind him, a concerned look on his face.

“What’s going on?” Zafer asks.

“Things you would never imagine,” Emir tells him with a humorless laugh. Because right now, it’s all he can do to keep from crying. “Reyhan is like this because of my mother.”

Emir takes a few minutes to explain to Zafer as best he can what happened. And this time, he tells him everything.

“It would seem that from the very beginning, my mother has been conspiring to get rid of Reyhan. All those times I came to you with complaints about Reyhan, ready to divorce her? All thanks to my mother. And probably Cemre too. But definitely my mother. I had no idea about the way my mother treated Reyhan until I read about it in her journal. Zafer, it’s a miracle Reyhan didn’t leave on her own.”

“A miracle?” Zafer asks, picking up on what Emir said. He gives his friend a teasing smile. “So does that mean you want her to stick around.”

“I do,” Emir easily admits. “Forever. I’m not going to lose her now.”

“Oh wow,” Zafer says, taken aback by his confession. “You really have fallen for her.”

Emir just smiles. It’s the second time he’s heard that and the second time he’s not going to say anything. No just yet. Not until he can tell Reyhan first. But to tell her, he needs her to get better. And she can’t do that here.

“We can’t stay here,” Emir tells his friend, his mood turning somber again. “I have to make sure she has whatever she needs to heal. And what she needs is in Ankara. There’s a clinic there that can help her. And it’s away from my mother.”

“Are you sure?”

“It’s the only way,” Emir shrugs. “She’s my priority. I have to take care of her now, Zafer. Getting her away from my mother is the best thing I can do for her. And our marriage.”

“Sounds like you’re following your heart finally,” Zafer smiles. “You can’t go wrong. I think you’re doing the right thing.”

“I do too, Son.”

They turn around to see Hikmet and the doctor standing there.

“Take care of your wife. Don’t worry about me or about this family. It was unfair of me to expect Reyhan to be the glue that holds us together. We’ll be fine as long as she’s fine. I’ll be happy as long as you two are happy. It’s all I ever wanted,” Hikmet tells him. He pulls him in for a hug.

“It’s the best course of action for Reyhan hanım considering her recent setback,” the doctor agrees. “This clinic has had excellent results for patients like her.”

“And you can take over the consulting work I was doing with the sister company in Ankara,” Zafer says, adding his support. “I’ll travel back and forth between here and there to maintain business continuity. Don’t worry. We’ve got your back, Bro. You just focus on Reyhan.”

Leaving home and being so far away from his family will be different. But it’s what Reyhan needs. And she’s his family now. He has to put her first. There is no choice to make.

“Then I guess we’re moving to Ankara.”

He’s nervous. But something tells him he’s about to make the best and most important move of his life.


	7. Chapter 7

Emir looks out on his new city. It’s not completely unfamiliar to him. He’s been there for work on occasion. But it looks new from Reyhan’s window at the clinic. He just wishes she were awake to see it too. But she’s still in the coma. Although the transfer from the hospital in Istanbul went well and the doctors here seem optimistic about her recovery, he still worries about her. And even more so, he misses her. He feels like things were just really starting between them. And now she’s like this.

“Wake up, Güzelim,” he whispers to her. “I don’t like what life is like without you.”

Life can be funny like that. When he was trying to push her away and get her to leave, she wouldn’t go anywhere. But now that he’d do anything to keep her, she’s so far away that he can’t reach her.

“So much time I wasted.”

He’d do anything to get that time back.

So far every day here has been the same. The doctors come to examine Reyhan and she gets tests and specialized medications to help internally. Then the nurses and various therapists come to handle the external - bathing and dressing her as well as physical therapy to help keep her in good physical condition. The first few days Emir just stood aside and watched the physical therapy portion. But now he takes part in the therapy for her, making sure her muscles stay healthy and pliable. But also giving him a chance to stay as close to her as possible.

The nurses have been amazing. And also amazingly patient, especially with him and his constant presence and never ending questions. He spends nearly every minute at the clinic and has become very familiar with them all. Half are in love with him, not only because of his good looks and his wealth. But also because they see how devoted and utterly in love he is with his wife. He even has a corner of her hospital room set up as office space for him to handle any work that comes up. He’s been lucky to be able to work mostly virtually. It’s especially helpful that he has Zafer to go back and forth between Istanbul and Ankara, so work continues to be done. He doesn’t know what he’d do without Zafer. He’s made it possible for Emir to stay by Reyhan’s side. Because leaving isn’t an option.

“I watched you sleep like this once,” he admits. “It was on our wedding night, after you so bravely came to my bed. You had fallen asleep afterwards and I just looked at you. Part of me felt so lucky to have you in my life. But a bigger part of me was so angry at my father and the whole situation. And I took it out on you.”

If only he had been able to appreciate then the gift he had been given. Even if it was just letting her know how grateful he was for the breakfast she made for him the next morning. Just a small, simple _thank you_. But instead, he had been cruel to her. So unnecessarily cruel. If he’s honest, deep down all he really wanted to do was take her back to bed. The anger won over that desire, unfortunately. And it continued to win for a long time, fueled by his mother’s games.

“Never again,” he promises, placing a gentle kiss on the hand he’s holding.

The nurses come just then. It’s time for one of her treatments. Needing a little space, Emir leaves them to it.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

He walks around the hospital on a route that has become familiar. They’ve been there for a little over a week and he knows exactly how long to stay gone until the treatment is over. Today, he decides to stop at one of his favorite places … the nursery. He likes seeing the babies. He likes imagining what it will be like when it’s his and Reyhan’s baby on the other side of the glass.

Continuing on his walk, he goes a little further and passes a room with some older kids. They jump and wave, excitedly calling out “Abi” as he passes. They too fill his heart with joy. Seeing them brightens his day. But he’s also sad that they have to spend their childhood there. He had asked a nurse one day about the children. She told him that most of the kids are there for a few days to a few weeks for treatment for various issues. Some are there for dialysis. Some are there waiting on a new heart or other organ. Most have their own rooms and family that visits often. This room here is just a play room where they can gather and have normal kid time.

He’s about to keep walking when a ball rolls out in front of him. A little girl comes running after it. He stoops down to pick it up and ends up eye level with her. He can’t help smiling at her adorably dimpled grin. This is the little one he’s seen often who reminds him of Reyhan. Same coloring. Same dark hair. Same huge eyes.

“Be careful, bir tanem,” he says to her, giving her the ball back. She graces him with another one of those beautiful smiles.

“Thanks abi!” She hugs him before running off.

He smiles after her. This was just what he needed. Each day Reyhan remains in the coma is another day for his heart to break a little more. It’s another day he can’t show her he loves her. But after seeing the children, he goes back to Reyhan’s room full of hope. Reyhan will get better. She just needs time and he just needs patience. Then once she’s better, he’ll do whatever it takes to win her heart.

Once he gets to the room, even better news greets him. The doctors believe Reyhan can come off the coma medication now. The treatments have gone well and it’s time for her to wake up.

“How long will it take?” Emir asks, back in his spot next to her, her hand in his.

“She’s been in the coma for almost two weeks. So it will take some time for the drugs to leave her system,” the doctor explains. “If after 72 hours she hasn’t woken up, we will give her something to help the process along. We just don’t want to give her medication unnecessarily.”

72 more hours. Three more days and this nightmare will be over. Then their real life can begin.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Later that evening, Emir is out in the hall making a call to his father and letting him know how Reyhan is doing.

“They’re going to stop giving her the medication that’s keeping her in the coma,” he tells his father. “And hopefully she should be waking up soon.”

“Suna sends her love,” Hikmet says. “And Melike too. They really miss her. We all do.”

Not everyone, Emir thinks with a sad sigh. His mother continues to be conspicuously missing during all of these phone calls. But she no longer has to pretend anymore. Emir has seen her true colors.

Ending the call with his father, Emir turns to go back to the room when he sees the little girl from before (the one with the ball) hiding while nurses search for her. She covers her mouth to hold in a mischievous little chuckle and it amuses him. He nearly laughs out loud when she sneaks into Reyhan’s room right behind the nurse’s back. He had left the door open, so it gave the girl the perfect escape route.

He alerts the nurse closest to him, but puts his finger to his lips. He points into Reyhan’s room to let the nurse know where the little girl went. When the nurse turns to go inside, he holds her back.

“She’s fine. My wife loves children and would get a big kick out of this if she were awake,” he says with a smile. “Don’t worry about the girl. I’ll coax her out of hiding and take her back to her own room in a bit. Just let her parents know you've found her and that she’ll be back soon.”

“She doesn’t have parents,” the nurse explains. “She’s one of our long term patients that we take care of full time.”

“Why is she here?” he wonders.

“She has a heart condition and she’s waiting on surgery. A fairly simple surgery to fix a valve, but an expensive one. And her foster parents can’t pay. Or more correctly, won’t pay,” the nurse says with a shrug. “I think they only have her for the monthly check. With her heart condition, she’s in the category that brings in more money than a regular foster child. So essentially the foster parents are getting paid while the hospital looks after the child.”

Emir is disturbed someone could do a child like that. He can’t help but think of how his mother has always treated Suna, though. He wants to do better for this girl. He’ll spend the evening thinking of something and let the nurses know in the morning.

But for right now, he just goes into the room, not giving the girl any indication he knows that she’s there. He thinks of a way to bring her out into the open and smiles when the perfect idea comes to mind. He goes to the mini fridge and pulls out his sandwich from earlier that he never ate. He sits and starts to unwrap it, setting a place at his table for two.

“This whole sandwich is going to be way too big for me. Too bad I don’t have anyone to share it with,” he says outloud.

He has a hard time holding in his laughter when his little guest pops her little head from out of her hiding place.

“I like sandwiches,” she says cheerfully, crawling out towards him. “You can share with me if you want.”

“Oh my goodness!” he says, false shock in his voice. “Where on earth did you come from? Were you hiding over there?”

She just giggles and climbs into his lap.

“What’s your name, Little One?”

Seeing her close up, he realizes she’s younger than he thought. Maybe just 4 years old or so. She seems to be a little bit younger than Masal. So he makes sure to tear her part of the sandwich into small pieces so she won’t choke.

“I’m Ayla,”she says around a bite of the sandwich.

“Çok memnun oldum, Ayla,” he says. “Very nice to meet you. My name is Emir.”

“Who’s that?” Ayla whispers to him, pointing at Reyhan. “She’s very pretty. Is she a princess?”

Emir just smiles at that.

“She’s Reyhan. My wife. She got sick and the doctors here are making her better,” he explains to her. “How about you? Are the doctors making you better too?”

Ayla shrugs and then shoves another piece of sandwich in her mouth. Emir is glad he made the pieces small. She has a surprisingly big appetite for such a little girl. When she has her fill, he takes her over to sit next to Reyhan.

“How about I tell you two a story.”

Ayla nods sleepily and shoves her thumb in her mouth, making herself comfortable on his lap.

Emir realizes he doesn’t really know any stories for children. But Ayla doesn’t seem to care what he’s saying. She just likes the sound of his voice. Pretty soon she’s asleep. When the nurse sticks her head in a bit later, he lets her take the sleeping child back to her room. Surprisingly, the room feels a little emptier after she’s gone.

But the girl is back the next night. And the night after that. By the third night, Emir realizes he’s come to expect her. He actually anticipates her visit. On the second night, she had mentioned she liked to color, so he has all kinds of art supplies ready for the next time she comes. He’s also bought a book of stories to read to her, his own knowledge of appropriate fairy tales pretty non existent.

“Emir abi,” she asks on her next visit after climbing to her favorite spot on the bed next to Reyhan. The girl likes to cuddle with her.

“Yes, Ayla?” he says patiently. The girl tends to ask tons of questions, mostly about Reyhan. She’s fascinated by her “princess” and never misses an opportunity to ask about her.

“When is Reyhan abla going to wake up? I can’t wait to meet her.”

The question makes Emir sad because it’s a question he asks himself everyday and doesn’t get an answer to. He would like nothing better for Reyhan to meet Ayla. Because that would mean that she’s finally woken up.

“Soon, baby,” he says, hoping his words to the little girl will come true. But the 72 hours the doctors said are almost over. And Reyhan isn’t waking up. He’s worried but tries to stay positive. He just has to believe she’ll come back to him.

“She’ll be awake soon,” he assures her. And himself. Because he can’t allow himself to believe anything else.

“Soon,” Ayla says with a sleepy yawn. She places a gentle kiss on Reyhan’s forehead before reaching out for Emir. She gives him a little kiss on his cheek before settling in and falling asleep on his shoulder.

Instantly his heart feels lighter. The pure, innocent faith of this child makes him believe anything is possible. He wonders to himself how he ever lived without people like her and Reyhan in his life before this.

“Emir bey,” a nurse says quietly when she steps into the room. “I’ll take Ayla back to her room now.”

“Thanks,” he nods, rising from his seat to hand the child over. He’s surprised at how hard it is for him to let her go.

“We never talked about children, did we?” he asks Reyhan after they’re alone again. “Maybe I’ll be able to talk you into having a couple soon.”

Funny how a guy who didn’t ever plan on getting married is now longing for a family. It’s all because of her. Reyhan has changed him more than he realized. He brushes the hair from off her forehead so he can fully see her face.

“We’ll have girls that will look like you. Be sweet like you. But also a little mischievous like Ayla,” he laughs. But her continued silence is deafening. It reminds him of how alone he is without her.

“Please wake up, Reyhan. I miss you.”

He takes her hand and drifts off to sleep, letting himself dream of those babies he talked about. He doesn’t notice when her hand squeezes his in response. He doesn’t notice when her eyes start to twitch behind their lids, as if her mind is suddenly filled with dreams. Dreams of those same babies he’s longing for.

He doesn’t realize his greatest wish is about to come true.


	8. Chapter 8

“Why isn’t she waking up?” Emir asks the doctor the next morning. “It’s been over the 72 hours.”

“Sometimes these things take time,” the doctor says, trying to reassure Emir. “The good news is that your wife’s condition is stable now. Even being officially off the drugs that kept her in the coma, the seizures haven’t returned and her body is strong and healthy. We’ll start her on the new medication and that should speed her recovery along. We’ll assess again after another 72 hours if she still hasn’t woken up.”

The thought of another 72 hours almost makes him completely lose whatever composure he’s been able to maintain in the long days and weeks since all this started. He’s starting to lose hope and the pain of missing her has become palpable. He absentmindedly rubs the spot on his chest over his aching heart.

“Please wake up,” he begs her once all the doctors and nurses leave. “Please come back to me.”

Another blow comes a couple of hours later when he’s waiting on Ayla to show up. He goes out into the hallway to watch for her running around the corner, but all he sees is the nurse that usually brings her to him.

“Where’s Ayla?” he asks, confused that she’s not there. His confusion turns to concern when he notices the look on the nurse’s face.

“Ayla had a bit of a setback today,” the nurse tells him. “This happens from time to time with her. But it’s happening more often lately. She really needs to have her surgery.”

“Then do it!” Emir barks out, scaring the nurse. He winces when he sees the fear on her face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell. I just don’t understand how this girl can’t get her surgery.”

“It’s very expensive and her foster parents won’t pay. And the state system only pays for the medication to help treat her symptoms.”

“If it’s just about money, then send me the bill. Just help this child,” Emir pleads. He realizes he’s come to care quite a bit about her. He’s helpless to do anything for Reyhan. But he can at least make sure Ayla gets the help she needs. Maybe he met this girl for just this purpose. Maybe if he does something good for her, the universe will pay in kind and Reyhan will wake up.

Emir goes to the accounting office to take care of whatever bills there are for Ayla so that she can get her surgery. And then he goes to do something he doesn’t do very often: he prays. He prays for Reyhan. He prays for his marriage. And he prays for that little girl who has managed to somehow steal a little piece of his heart.

Back in the room with Reyhan, he sees no signs of change. But he can feel his prayers have made a difference. He sits next to her and takes her hand like he always does. For the first time in a long time, he feels like something good is going to happen.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

All of the memories swim around in her head and she can’t make sense of anything. A blue dress. An ocean. Dinner. Dancing. Music. Staring at clouds with Masal while Emir looks at them both with so much love in his eyes. Erzurum. A baby. And again that look of love from Emir. Is it just a dream?

She blinks her eyes open and looks around. The room doesn’t look familiar. But it appears to be a hospital. Why is she in the hospital?

Her eyes continue to travel the room and they land on a form next to her bed. She reaches out a hand to stroke through the thick, soft hair attached to the head resting on her stomach. She’s also dreamed of doing this many, many times. But she never had the nerve to actually touch the man who was only her husband on paper.

He stirs and she freezes, her hand in mid stroke.

“Reyhan,” he mumbles, still partially asleep. His eyes have yet to open.

“Emir,” she says in return, surprised to hear the rough, scratchy quality of her voice. Almost as if she hasn’t used it in quite a while.

When he doesn’t wake up, she calls him again, a bit louder.

“Emir!” she says again. But this time she starts coughing when her irritated throat protests. The coughing is what wakes him up.

He sleepily takes her hand and gives it a squeeze before lifting it up to his mouth to kiss it. She gasps in surprise at his actions.

The gasp clears the fuzziness from his head and he sits straight up, staring at her in complete and utter shock.

“Reyhan?”

She gives him a tentative smile, still unsure what’s going on. He seems genuinely happy to see her.

“You’re awake! You’re finally awake!”

He hugs her, holding her a bit tighter than is comfortable. But strangely enough, it feels _comforting_. He drops a kiss on the top of her head before letting her go.

“How are you feeling? No, wait. Don’t answer that yet. Let me get the doctor first.”

He gives her one last smile before running out the door.

While he’s gone, she tries to make sense of what’s happening. It’s clear she’s in the hospital. But she doesn’t know why. And she appears to be on good terms with Emir. But she doesn’t know how. She doesn’t have much time to think about what else she does or doesn’t know because Emir returns at that moment with the doctor in tow.

She can’t help but notice how happy Emir looks. But she just can’t for the life of her figure out what’s going on. Everything is jumbled. Nothing matches her reality.

“Welcome back, Reyhan hanım,” the doctor says. He also has a cheerful smile on his face.

“What’s going on? What’s happened to me?”

She feels a warmth travel through her body when Emir takes her hand in his own. _Why is he doing this_ , she asks herself. He must be trying to fool the doctors. But again, why?

“You had a beach outing with your husband here and ended up with a nasty infection,” the doctor explains. “You’ve been healing for a couple of weeks. Your husband brought you to this clinic in Ankara to get you the best care possible.”

Ankara. That sounds familiar, she realizes.

_“Good for you. Rest and peace are important,”_ Cemre had said. She remembers now. _“But I guess you’ll get plenty of that when Emir sends you to that clinic in Ankara for treatment. A top notch clinic, from what I hear. They’ll get you back on your feet and then you can decide if you want to stay in Ankara or go back to your village. After the divorce, there won’t be any point in you coming back here to Istanbul.”_

Divorce. Her heart sinks.

“How are you feeling, Reyhan hanım?”

Confused. Embarrassed. Angry. Sad. Tired. So very tired of everything with Emir and this marriage. She wishes she’d never left Erzurum. She wishes her uncle had taken no for an answer when he asked her to marry Emir.

She slides her hand from Emir’s and leans away from him. She looks up at the doctor.

“I’d be more comfortable in private,” she says, refusing to look at Emir. She still doesn’t know what game he’s playing, but she won’t let him play with her heart anymore. She’s even more embarrassed to realize her heart had gotten involved in the first place. She’d probably die if he realized it too.

“Reyhan?” Emir says, clearly confused.

“Please go,” she manages to say, still not looking at him.

“I don’t understand.” He tries to take her hand again, but she doesn’t let him. Her traitorous heart skips a beat when he puts a hand to her chin to lift her eyes to face him.

“Lütfen,” she pleads, begging him to comply.

She can’t contain her gasp of surprise when she sees the hurt look in his eyes. But she knows he will only hurt her worse later if she doesn’t put some space between them now.

“If you’ll excuse us, Emir Bey,” the doctor says. He walks to the door and opens it for Emir.

“I’ll be outside,” Emir says, giving Reyhan one last pleading look. When she says nothing, he finally leaves.

She should be relieved. But she isn’t. Her mind says she did the right thing, but her heart is telling her something different. Her heart is aching at his absence. So which one should she listen to?

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Two days later, she’s still trying to figure it out. Granted, she’s been asleep more than awake these past two days. But every time she wakes up, Emir is right there. Holding her hand. He only leaves when the doctors and nurses come and she asks for privacy. She doesn’t know what to make of it. Or why she never wants to let go of him when she wakes, her heart and head still in a struggle with each other.

“Your doctor says you should get out and move around some. How about I grab a wheelchair and take you out to the garden?” Emir suggests. “You can get some fresh air and sun.”

Both her head and her heart agree with this, so she gives him a quick nod. In return, he gives her a smile that sends a jolt right through her chest. She’s finding it harder and harder to resist him.

The trip outside is made in silence. But it’s not really like the silence before she got sick. Before, she was afraid to do anything wrong to make him mad. So she said as little as possible to avoid any conflict. But now, he seems to want to talk to her. But he also seems to be patiently waiting until she’s ready for a conversation. He’s never been patient before about anything. And she has to admit that it has her intrigued now.

She points out a pretty spot and waits for him to park the wheelchair. He finds a seat nearby and surprises her once again.

“Before I forget,” he says, pulling something out of his pocket and handing it to her. “Your cell. It was at our house, so I ran home earlier to pick it up for you. I know my father would be thrilled to hear from you. And Suna. She asks about you all the time.”

“Our house? We have a house here in Ankara?”

“Of course,” he says, giving her a confused look. “You’re not going to be in this clinic much longer. But the doctor recommends us staying close for the rest of your treatments. It may take awhile before you’re completely well again. But after that, we can go back to Istanbul whenever you’re ready.”

“We?” she asks, still puzzled by how he’s acting.

“Reyhan, are you okay?” he wants to know when her behavior becomes too strange to be put off on the side effects of the drugs she was taking.

The doctor said the medication might have left her a bit confused. She’s been quiet and distant since she woke up. But he just thought she needed time to adjust to be awake after so long in a coma. Not to mention needing to deal with the fact that she had been in a coma in the first place. But this seems like something more.

He kneels next to her and lifts a hand to her forehead to check for fever. Her cheeks are a bit flushed.

“I should have grabbed a blanket. Are you cold? Should we go back inside?” His hands rub up and down her arms to try to bring warmth to her. He ends up holding her hands to try to warm them too.

No matter how much she’s seen it over the past two days, his concern is a shock to her. And she can’t take the confusion anymore.

“Why are you doing this?” she finally asks. “Why are you acting like we’re a real couple, even when the doctors aren’t around? Why are you being so nice to me?”

His eyes open a little in shock as he takes a step back. It takes everything in her not to reach for his hands again.

“This is more than a little confusion from the drugs,” he mutters, almost to himself. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

She drops her head, dropping her eyes from his. After a moment, she just shrugs.

“I remember packing my suitcase and leaving,” she says. “I remember being in the hospital and Cemre telling me you were divorcing me and sending me away to a clinic.”

She finally looks up at him again, into his eyes. She remembers those eyes. But it all seems like a dream.

_“Yes, I want a real marriage with you, Emir Tarhun. I want this to be about us and not about my uncle’s request. But I mostly want to one day hear you tell me about that love I can see in your eyes.”_

“Is that all you remember?” he asks.

Her cheeks get hot and she raises a hand to try to cover them. But he’s already seen.

“Because you’re blushing,” he points out with a smile. “Maybe you’re remembering the last time I saw you blush like this. It was the first time I told you how beautiful you are.”

Her eyes widen at the words that seemingly came straight out of her dreams.

“Or maybe you’re remembering how I told you I wanted a real marriage with you and not one based on a vow you made to my father.”

“You know about that?” she asks with a gasp. But the more he speaks, the more the dreams turn into memories.

_“I want a real marriage with you, Reyhan. I didn’t want this at first. I married you against my will. You know that. And I punished you everyday for what my father made us do. But none of this was your fault. You were just granting a dying man his final wish. So if this isn’t what you really want, I wouldn’t blame you if you said no. You may have made a vow to my father, but we also made vows to each other when we got married. Those vows mean something and I’d like to keep them. I’d like to be a husband to you. I’d like to take care of you. Honor you. Cherish you.”_

Her heart starts to beat faster and faster. Could this really be true? Could this really be real? In a way, she’s more confused than she was at the start of this conversation. Could Emir really love her?

She looks into his eyes, just like she did in her dream/memory. She isn’t ready for what she sees.

“Too much,” she mumbles. “Too fast.”

Her eyes fill with tears. She needs time. Space. She can’t handle any of this.

“Take me back to the room, please,” she begs him.

“Reyhan?”

“Please, Emir,” she begs again.

He just nods and bends to unlock the wheels on the wheelchair. He can’t do anything else but comply. But a conversation is definitely in order. He’ll let her run now, but once they get back to the room, no more running. Now that he’s finally got her back, he’s not going to let her go again.


	9. Chapter 9

Like the trip out to the garden, the trip back to the room was made in complete silence. This time, the silence is heartbreaking. But Reyhan can’t handle any of this right now. It’s all too much. She feels like Emir has lived a lifetime of changes in the short time she was in the coma. And it’s all too overwhelming.

When she looked into his eyes, she was blown away by the love she saw there. So unexpected. So powerful. So against anything he’s ever said before. It nearly knocked down all her defenses. She needs time and space to put her walls back up. She won’t let him hurt her again.

“Thank you,” she says once they get back to the room and get her settled back into her bed. “I think I’ll rest now.”

Clearly a dismissal. But he ignores her.

“Reyhan, can you just talk to me. Please. That was a promise we made to each other not so long ago … to talk. To communicate. To not let misunderstandings come between what we could have here.”

“I just don’t understand what’s happening,” she says to him, tears starting to fill her eyes.

“Don’t you remember?”

“It’s all a jumble,” she shrugs. “Reality mixed in with dreams. I don’t know what to believe.”

It’s a blow to his heart, but he understands. He’s never given her a reason to trust or believe him before. He’s never given her a reason to believe that he would want this with her. In fact, he went out of his way to let her know he wanted nothing to do with her. But all that was before his heart changed. An event that happened earlier than she realizes.

“This is a lot for you,” he finally says. “I get it. But what did I just say? What did we promise?”

“Communication?” she says, repeating his words from earlier. But still sounding unsure.

“We never talked about anything before,” he adds. “And we ended up only hurting each other. That’s mostly on me. I hurt you so much.”

His sad eyes do something strange to her heart. This time, she’s the one to reach out for him. It makes no sense, but holding on to him seems right.

‘I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “For everything. I’ll tell you as much and as often as you need until you believe me.

_“I’m here for good. I’m not leaving you anymore,”_ he had promised her. _“And I won’t let you leave me. We’re going to work this out and we’re going to be fine, okay? There’s a lot we need to talk about. Starting with an apology from me.”_

The memories are getting clearer now. She still has questions, but now she thinks she’s ready for the answers.

“Okay, Emir.” She gives him a shy smile. “Let’s talk. About everything.”

“No running? No hiding?”

She nods her agreement. She has to take a leap of faith, she realizes. For the first time in their marriage, there’s no one around. No one to stop them. No one to fill Emir’s head with who knows what lies to make him hate her. But she’s still afraid.

“Can you promise me something?” she asks, needing this more than she realized. “Can you promise to never again do to me what you did to me on that beach?”

“Reyhan,” he sighs, looking away in shame. “I’m so ….”

“I know,” she interrupts him, giving him a sad smile. “I know you’re sorry. I’m starting to remember everything more clearly. You already told me how someone tricked you into thinking something terrible about me. But you never told me who or what.”

“I think you can guess the who.”

She doesn’t say anything to that and he can’t help but wonder why. Because he knows she has a theory. He’s read her journal. He knows all the things his mother has done to her. But what he doesn’t know is why she never told anyone.

“Why didn’t you ever say how my mother tortured you? How her lies and tricks made your every waking minute miserable?” he finally asks. “How could you be so patient with the way I treated you after my mother constantly made me think the worst of you? I know I was unreasonable and believed everything my mother said. But why didn’t you ever say anything to my father?”

“Why would any of you have believed me?”

It’s a sad truth that neither of them can deny.

“I wish I had,” he tells her. “From the very beginning there was something about you that had taken hold of my heart. I’ve had a lot of time to think over these past few weeks and that first time we met, that first time I saw you in the kitchen … that was it for me. My life, and my heart, was forever changed. But I never believed in love at first sight. So I fought hard. But the more I fought, the harder it became to deny what I was feeling. And that just made me even angrier. Because my main goal was to prove my father wrong. It killed me that he was right about us. And it kills me now because based on how I treated you before, you have every right to tell me exactly where I can shove these feelings. I’ve been so unfair to you. And it’s unfair now to expect you to ever forgive me.”

“You’ve hurt me a lot,” she agrees. “And at first, the only thing keeping me in that mansion was the oath I made to my uncle. And the hopes that one day you’d be on your knees before me telling me exactly what you’re telling me now.”

“On my knees?” He gives her a curious glance. But if that’s what she needs … he just shrugs before sliding out of his chair and kneeling next to her. “Your wish is my command.”

The unexpected action takes her by surprise and before she realizes, she’s giggling. Uncontrollably.

“Emir, what are you doing?” she asks between laughs. “Get up!”

His heart swells. Her laughter is one of the most beautiful sounds he’s ever heard.

“This is the first time I’ve made you this happy.”

He makes a silent promise to himself that it won’t be the last time, either. Her days should be filled with nothing but love, happiness, and laughter. And he wants to be the one to bring her those things.

“For real,” she says when the laughter dies down enough for her to speak. “Get up off the floor.”

She slides over in the bed and pats the space next to her. The bed is small and it takes a little bit more adjusting to get them both to fit, but they work it out. He throws an arm over her and she rests her head on his shoulder.

“We’re going to be okay,” he promises her, reveling in the feeling of peace at having her in his arms finally. “One day I’ll be the husband you deserve.”

“You already are,” she sighs happily. “And better yet, you’re the one that I want.”

He just smiles and pulls her a little closer. Yes. They’re going to be fine.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Zafer visits the next day, bringing some work for Emir to do and also a surprise for Reyhan.

“Dayı!”

Her excited smile warms Emir’s heart. He loves whatever makes her happy. She spent so much of the beginning of their marriage unhappy. He wasn’t kidding when he promised to always put a smile on her face. Arranging this surprise visit from his father was just one way to do that.

“Thanks for coming, Baba,” Emir says, giving his father a hug. “I’m going to give you two some time.”

He motions to Zafer to follow him out into the hallway so that Reyhan and Hikmet can have the room.

“Thanks for bringing him,” Emir says to his friend. “I think she was really missing him.”

“Anytime. How is she, by the way? Last we spoke you said the medication still had her kind of confused.”

“She’s better. We’re better. I think this move is going to be good for us,” Emir says hopefully. “Istanbul was full of distractions. Here, we only have each other. We have the chance to really get to know each other.”

Emir gives Zafer a questioning look when the other man starts laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“You, my friend, are so in love with your wife,” Zafer continues to laugh. “A wife you didn’t even want, I remind you.”

“I’ve changed,” Emir shrugs. “We both have. I made so many mistakes and hurt her so much. But she’s giving me another chance and I feel like the luckiest man alive. You should try it.”

“Me? With a wife? Never!” Zafer puts emphasis on the never.

“I said the same thing and look at me now. Life comes at you unexpectedly,” Emir warns him. “Learn from my mistakes and be open to whatever comes your way. It could end up being the best thing to happen to you.”

“You’re talking crazy,” Zafer laughs, dismissing Emir’s warning. “Now sign these papers and I’ll head over to the office here to drop them off. You can tell Hikmet amca I’ll be back for him when I’m done there.”

Emir shakes his head and takes the stack of documents needing his signature. He can’t wait for the day he can say _I told you so_ to Zafer. Not so much to be smug about it. Which, okay, would be a bit of a benefit. But mostly because he wants his friend to be as happy as he is. He wants his friend to find the person that completes his heart the way Reyhan completes his. Zafer deserves that kind of happiness.

“Emir bey …”

Emir looks up when a nurse calls him. He signals for her to give him a moment while he finishes the last of the signatures. He gives the stack of documents back to Zafer and sends him on his way before turning back to the nurse.

“There’s a problem,” she says when she gets his full attention. “It’s Ayla.”

“What do you mean?” he says, starting to panic. “They said her surgery went well. I was going to take Reyhan to meet her once the doctors clear the visit. What’s happened?”

“You wouldn’t have been able to do that anyway. Ayla’s foster parents checked her out of the hospital days ago, almost as soon as she was awake from her surgery.”

“What? Why did …” He stops his building tirade when the nurse holds up her hand.

“But she’s back. She’s just been brought into Emergency,” the nurse explains.

Emir’s heart stops, but he quickly recovers. He needs to get to her.

“Take me to her,” he orders the nurse, who quickly follows his direction.

He’s not sure what he’s going to do when he gets there. But for now he just needs to see her and make sure she’s okay. Then he’s going to whatever it takes to make sure that she’ll always be okay.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“How are you really doing, Kızım?” Hikmet asks Reyhan once they’re alone. “We’ve been really worried about you.”

“I’m getting stronger every day. I’m feeling much better,” she assures him. “But I think it’s been harder on Emir, though. He seems very tired and looks like he’s lost weight. I feel bad that I put him through this.”

She noticed it when she woke up, but it just didn’t make sense to her. Not until they had their little conversation the other day. So much has been cleared up. Things aren’t perfect between them, but they both seem to be headed in the right direction. Her heart is learning to trust him.

“Don’t worry about Emir. He’s a grown man. He can take care of himself. You need to focus on yourself,” Hikmet says.

“I’m going to worry about him. He’s my husband.”

She’s confused by the strange look that crosses her uncle’s face at that statement.

“Listen, Reyhan. All this has really gotten out of hand,” he says with a sigh. “I realize now that I shouldn’t have asked this of you. It was wrong of me to force this wedding on the two of you. So right here, right now, I’m releasing you from your vow. I’m giving you your life back.”

“My life?” she asks. “What does that mean?”

“It means you are my niece. You will always be my niece. And I should have done a better job looking after you. But I’m going to make it up to you. Don’t feel as if you have to stay married to my son to still be my family. Say the word and I’ll send you anywhere you want to go. This is a good clinic, but it isn’t the best. I can send you to the best. And I can make sure Emir doesn’t follow.”

“You think I should leave my husband?” she asks, just to clarify.

“I think you should seriously think about your own life for a change. Don’t do what you think is best for me or for Emir. Do what you think is best for you. Kızım, you have every opportunity open and available to you now. I can make it so your marriage never existed.”

The pain she feels in her chest when he says those words to her has nothing to do with her physical body. Nevertheless she feels it as if someone had stabbed her through the heart. It’s at that moment she realizes there’s no _learning_ to love Emir or _learning_ to trust him. Not anymore. Because she’s already head over heels.

“Dayı,” she starts, about to decline his offer and let him know that leaving Emir is the last thing she wants to do. But out of the corner of her eye, she catches movement at the doorway. She looks up to see Emir standing there, utter devastation on his face. Her heart breaks because she knows his has been crushed.

“Emir,” she calls to him just as he turns to leave. She’s afraid he’s about to leave, so she starts to get out of bed to go after him.

“Reyhan! What are you doing? Stop, Kızım. You’ll hurt yourself.”

“Emir is leaving,” she tries to tell him, still struggling to go after him. But her uncle succeeds in stopping her and gets her settled back in the bed.

“Maybe it’s for the best,” Hikmet shrugs. “Maybe this is a sign. I love my son, but he can be spoiled and immature. You deserve a better husband than he can ever be.”

_But he’s the husband that I want_ , she says in her head, repeating her words from earlier.

“Think about what I said,” Hikmet says, leaning over to press a kiss on her forehead. “Take this time alone and really think about what you want. No matter your decision, I’ll handle Emir. If you want, that will be the last you see of him.”

Hikmet leaves and the emptiness of the room steals her breath. For the first time since her mother died, she feels truly alone. For the first time in her marriage, she feels she might truly lose Emir. And now more than ever she understands that she doesn’t ever want to be without him.

Her uncle had told her he could keep Emir from her forever if it’s what she wants. But it’s not what she wants. It’s not at all what she wants. What she wants is to scream at the top of her lungs so that Hikmet, Emir, and everyone in the whole hospital hears that she wants her husband back.

But she won’t get him back by doing nothing. Before she knows what she’s doing, the call button for the nurse’s station is in her hands and she’s frantically pushing it to get their attention.

“You have to help me,” she says to the nurse that finally comes into the room. “You have to help me get to Emir.”

She has a strong feeling that her marriage depends on it.


	10. Chapter 10

_“I can make it so your marriage never existed.”_

The words of his father took the breath out of him when he heard them. Her silence afterwards shook him to his core. Does she want to leave? Does she want to be free? He didn’t have the courage to wait for the answer.

He had gone to the room on the way to see about Ayla just to give Reyhan a heads up. He didn’t expect to hear his father trying to destroy his marriage. But can he blame the man? Can he blame either of them? Emir is afraid he may have irreparably ruined any chances of being with Reyhan. She probably won’t ever trust him again.

But he won’t give up. He’ll give her the time and space she needs to figure out how much he loves her. But he’s definitely going to have to keep his pride in check. He can’t allow his ego to ruin his chance at happiness with Reyhan. He’ll check on Ayla first and then go back to Reyhan and pray he can convince her to stay.

“She’s this way,” the nurse tells him, pointing to the room where Ayla is. The nurse inside the room looks up when he walks in.

“Can I help you?” she asks, giving Emir a strange look.

“I just came to check on her,” Emir says. “How is she?”

“Emir abi?” Ayla opens her eyes when she hears his voice and reaches for him.

He takes her tiny little hands and kisses them before leaning over to kiss her forehead.

“How are you, Bir Tanem? What are you doing back here?” he asks her. “Did you miss me so much that you had to come back?”

“No silly,” she giggles.

He winks at her before turning his attention back to her nurse.

“What happened to her?” Emir asks again.

The nurse tells Ayla they’ll be back in a minute before ushering him outside.

“Sir, I’m not sure who you are, but she seemed happier to see you than she was to see her foster parents. And for that, I’m grateful. Seeing you made a big difference in her attitude. But I still can’t tell you anything about this patient. Not without consent.”

“Please,” Emir begs her. “My wife is a patient here and I met Ayla one day by chance. When she got really sick, I paid for her surgery. I just want to know how she is.”

The nurse lets out a sigh and then gives a look around to see if they’re alone.

“She’s fine now,” the nurse says in a low voice. “But she’s back here because her foster parents took her out the hospital way too soon and then didn’t take care of her the way they should. Rumor has it, one of the other foster children in the house called and reported them and called the ambulance for Ayla. The foster parents are with the doctor and the police now.”

The nurse nods her head at the group of people at the end of the hall. Emir clenches his fists in anger as he gets the first look at Ayla’s foster parents. His feet are moving in that direction before he even realizes he’s made the decision to go to them. He just wants to have a few words with them.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan is suspicious when her nurse gets strangely quiet when she asks where Emir is. It takes some pushing, but the nurse finally agrees to take Reyhan. She doesn’t explain. She just says that Reyhan has to see it for herself. That makes Reyhan even more suspicious.

The nurse helps Reyhan get into a wheelchair and takes her down to the emergency room.

“Why would Emir be down here?” Reyhan wonders aloud.

“To see her,” the nurse says, pointing to a room.

Reyhan’s heart stops. _Her?_ Her husband is here to see another woman? If anyone were to ask Reyhan if she was a jealous person, she would have denied it. Until now. Reyhan is surprised at the feelings of possessiveness rising up on the inside. She takes a deep breath to tamp down on the urge to rush in there and punch someone. She’s not a violent person.

“Take me in there please,” she tells the nurse. She isn’t prepared for what she sees.

A little girl’s eyes widen in shock and excitement when she enters the room.

“Reyhan abla? You’re awake! The princess is awake!” she claps her hands in glee. “Emir abi told me you were going to wake up soon and you did!”

“Emir abi?” Reyhan turns back to her nurse, confusion in her eyes.

“This is Ayla,” she explains, pushing Reyhan closer to the bed. “She and Emir bey became special friends while you were sleeping.”

“Oh. Really?” Reyhan says, not able to hide her surprise. This little girl is who Emir came to see. She can’t wrap her mind around that. But she doesn’t want to scare the little girl, so she pastes a smile on her face. “Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Ayla. Thank you for keeping Emir abi company while I slept. I bet you two had lots of fun.”

“Lots and lots,” Ayla agrees excitedly.

The little girl seems sweet, Reyhan decides. It’s easier to see how she enchanted Emir. She finds that she really is happy to meet Ayla.

Sudden shouts from outside the door scare the little girl and her face goes pale. Reyhan immediately takes her hand and gives it a squeeze. Reyhan recognized one of the voices as Emir’s. Apparently, Ayla did too.

“Why is Emir abi yelling at those mean people?”

“What mean people, Sweetheart?”

“The people I live with,” she whispers, trying to hide under her covers. “Don’t make me go back with them.”

Reyhan looks up again at her nurse, again with confusion in her eyes.

“Her foster parents,” the nurse whispers.

Reyhan can only assume it’s a bad situation for Ayla. She just wants to take the girl and wrap her in her arms.

“Bring her to me,” she tells the nurse when Ayla starts crying, the desire to comfort her overwhelming. “It’s okay, Tatlım. I’ve got you.”

She strokes the little girl’s hair for a while until she settles down.

“Don’t make me go back to them,” Ayla continues to beg, holding on tight to Reyhan. “Don’t make me go back.”

Reyhan can’t help but wonder what kind of people would be able to terrify a small child like this. Whatever the case, the girl can’t go back to them.

“Don’t worry, sweetheart. Emir abi will take care of everything,” Reyhan promises, hoping she’s telling the truth. She’s never asked for anything from Emir, but somehow she’s going to have to ask him to do this one thing for Ayla.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It didn’t take Emir long to convince the police to question the foster parents. After that, the social worker was called. Emir wasn’t letting Ayla go back into that home no matter what it takes. Emir sizes the social worker up, trying to get a read on the woman. He can only hope she will want what’s best for Ayla.

“Defne Batuk,” the social worker introduces herself, offering her hand to shake. She shakes first the police officer’s hand and then Emir’s. “Emir Tarhun, correct? May I ask what your interest is in this case?”

“My interest is Ayla’s well being,” he snaps at her before realizing he needs to calm down. “Excuse me, I’m a little upset. But what happened to Ayla is very distressing.”

“How do you know Ayla?” Defne asks curiously.

“My wife is a patient in this hospital,” Emir explains. “I met Ayla one day and we became fast friends. When she got sick and needed the surgery her foster parents wouldn’t pay for, I paid for it. Please tell me she won’t have to go back with those people.”

“She won’t. She’ll be transferred to a group home once she’s released from here. Unfortunately, there are more children than good homes for them to go to.”

“A group home? She’s so young,” Emir notes. “She deserves a family.”

“They all deserve families, Emir bey,” Defne says with a sigh. “But there’s nothing I can do. Unless you want to take her, she’ll be going to the group home.”

That suggestion stops him cold. But given a minute to think about it, it’s not such a far fetched idea. But he also realizes the decision isn’t his alone.

“That’s an option?” he asks, making sure he heard the social worker correctly. “Ayla could come home with me?”

“You and your wife,” the social worker corrects.

Reyhan! What would she say about this?

“I don’t know,” Emir says, still overwhelmed by the suggestion. “My wife …I have to talk to my wife.”

“You don’t even have to ask.”

Emir turns around when he hears Reyhan’s voice. He runs to her when he sees her tear filled eyes. She’s standing, leaning against a wall rather than being in a wheelchair. So when he gets to her, he wraps his arms around her to support her.

“Hey, what are you doing down here and out of bed?” he asks, pressing a kiss on her forehead before leading her over to a bank of chairs lining the wall. The social worker follows them.

“I’m fine,” she assures him. “I just met Ayla. And if they’ll let us take her, we have to, Emir. She’s terrified of having to go back to those people.”

“Are you sure about this?” Emir asks her. “We have to be sure.”

“Emir, that little girl needs us. She already loves and trusts you. I promised her you would fix this for her.”

He closes his eyes and leans his forehead against her forehead, letting out a relieved breath.

“Thank you,” he whispers to her. “Thank you so much. I didn’t realize how much I needed to do this for her.”

Reyhan looks up at the social worker with a watery smile, wiping away a stray tear that has escaped.

“We’ll take her,” Reyhan says. Defne smiles back at her.

“I’ll do what I can, but I can’t make any promises. But the fact that you both seem to already have a connection with the child and want to do this will go a long way in any decisions that get made.”

Defne gives them one last smile before leaving. Once Emir and Reyhan are alone, Emir lets out another deep breath, dropping his head into his hands.

“Give me a minute.” He just breathes deeply a few times. It’s been an emotional day and it’s all catching up with him. Reyhan rubs his back soothingly.

“It’s going to be okay,” she promises. “She’s going to be safe with us.”

“Are you sure about this? I didn’t even consult you. I just knew I couldn’t let her go back to that situation. “I’m …”

“Shh! You did the right thing. You did the perfect thing. It makes me want to be with you all the more.”

“You want to be with me?” He gives her a hopeful look. She just laughs and rolls her eyes.

“Yes! And you would have realized that fact in about 2 more seconds if you hadn’t left when I was talking with your father.”

“I just walked away for a minute. I didn’t leave,” he corrects her. “I promised you I’d never leave again.”

“Then I guess you’re stuck with me. Because I’m not leaving either,” she promises.

He takes her hand and kisses it before placing it on his heart.

“This is yours. So you just have to get used to that. It beats only for you now.”

She blushes, lifting her free hand to her suddenly hot cheeks. He can resist leaning over and kissing one of those cheeks. It makes her happier than she thought she could ever be. She leans her head on his shoulder and sighs a sigh of satisfaction.

They sit for a few minutes. Then Reyhan looks towards the door leading to Ayla’s room with a smile and says, “I guess we have a kid now.”

They both laugh.

“I’m as surprised as you are,” he says, continuing to chuckle. “But how did you know to come here? How did you know about her?”

“I came looking for you after you father left,” she explains. “The nurse brought me down here to Ayla’s room. Needless to say, I was shocked when I saw her. But when she looked up at me with that smile, it was over. She just has a way that draws you in.”

“She has your eyes,” he tells her. “The first time I met her, I was walking around the hospital worrying about you and thinking about you and wishing you’d wake up. Then this little girl pops out of nowhere and looks up at me with your eyes. I think I was drawn to her from the start. In a weird way, she saved me. She made me believe that you would be okay. And once she saw you, she never gave up hope that she’d get to meet you one day. Her hope helped me when I started to lose my own.”

“Well, I’m back now,” she says, cupping his cheek with her hand. “I came back for you. And for her, it would seem.”

He laughs again and she gives him a confused look.

“What’s so funny?” she wants to know.

“We have yet to do things in the proper order. We got married before getting to know each other. And now we’re jumping straight to raising a full grown kid.” He looks around before lowering his voice conspiratorially. “Without the fun of making one.”

He’s never seen her cheeks turn that shade of red.

“Emir!” she gasps, totally scandalized by his comment. Again he just laughs. Teasing her is fun.

“Don’t worry,” he says, thinking how to tease her some more. “We’ll do plenty of practicing so that we’ll be experts by the time we get ready to have one of our own.”

“Emir,” she says again. But this time less shocked and more wistful. She’s never heard him talk about having children. She didn’t think it was something he wanted. Or would ever want. Certainly not with her. She has to admit, this softer side of him is really affecting her. “You’re being wicked.”

Her soft smile lets him know that she doesn’t mind this “wicked” side of him too much.

“And besides,” she says, trying to change the subject. “She’s not quite fully grown. She’s only four. She’s got plenty of growing yet to do. She’s still a little girl.”

“Yeah,” he says with a sigh, staring at the door with more than a little bit of fear and trepidation. But also with pride that he can’t quite explain. “And now she’s our little girl.”

Reyhan just nods before resting her head on his shoulder again. She’s starting to get tired.

“Our little girl,” she smiles before yawning. “I like the sound of that.”


	11. Chapter 11

He lets her sleep for a few minutes, enjoying the feeling of her being cuddled against his side. But he knows she’ll be better off in her own bed. He tries to gently shake her awake, but she only burrows deeper into him. He smiles. He can get used to a cuddly Reyhan.

When she doesn’t wake, he gathers her up into his arms and carries her back to her room. He takes his time, not wanting to wake her. But also because he loves having her in his arms. It seems like the more he touches her, the more his heart is filled with her. And the more her scent seeps into his soul. She’s becoming a part of him.

Her eyes begin to blink sleepily when they get to the room and he lays her on the bed.

“Emir? What are you doing?” she asks him, looking around to see where she is. “How did we get back here?”

“You fell asleep on me, sleepy head,” he says with a smile. “So I carried you up here so you could get some real rest.”

“You carried me? Through the hospital? Emir!” She’s blushing again and Emir officially adds making her blush as one of his favorite things to do. He just loves getting such a reaction out of her.

“You’re so adorable when you get embarrassed.” He leans over and presses a kiss to her nose, surprising her.

But she quickly gets over the surprise and scowls at him.

“Something tells me I’m going to have to work to make sure you behave in the future.”

“Behave? What’s the fun in behaving?” he asks, leaning in for another kiss. This time, his aim is the treasure of her mouth. Her eyes widen a bit. In panic? In excitement? He doesn’t know.

And he never finds out.

“Emir bey? Oh! Excuse me,” a voice calls from the door.

Emir just closes his eyes and sighs at the interruption.

“I’m really sorry,” the nurse who interrupted them apologizes.

“It’s fine,” Reyhan says with a smile, both relieved and disappointed to miss that kiss. This is all still so new to her. She’s struggling to keep up with the changes in their relationship. She lifts her hand up to her lips and just thinks about how close he had been. Her heart is still racing.

“What do you need?” Emir asks the nurse.

“Ayla seems a little down,” the nurse says. “You asked us to let you know how she was doing. And she’s fine. But …”

“Say no more,” Reyhan says before turning to Emir. “You have to go to her. We can’t leave her alone. I’ll be fine. I’m probably just going to go back to sleep anyway. I’ll get some rest and then later, we can all eat together.”

“Are you sure?” he asks. “I don’t want to leave you.”

She reaches out to place her hand over his heart.

“Didn’t you say I was here?” she reminds him, smiling when he nods. “Then you won’t be leaving me because I’ll be with you. But she needs you. She’s just a baby. She shouldn’t be in a place like this all by herself. We have to put her first.”

“Okay,” Emir finally agrees. He looks up at the nurse. “Tell Ayla I’m coming. I’ll be there shortly.”

The nurse nods and leaves, leaving Emir and Reyhan alone.

“Go to her,” Reyhan orders.

“I am. I just wanted to stay until you fell asleep again. You,” he says, taking her hand, “are my priority too. By the way, this whole maternal instinct thing you’ve got going on is pretty sexy.”

“Emir!” She just shakes her head at him.

“Tamam, tamam. I’ll behave,” he says with a laugh. He stands and places a kiss on her hand before letting it go. “You behave, too. Get some sleep.”

He keeps his smile as he heads out the door. But the minute he’s away from her, he starts to miss her. This won’t do. Both Reyhan and Ayla need him and he needs to be with them both. He’s just going to have to figure out a way to make that happen.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan can’t sleep. Once again, her life is moving at the speed of light and she can’t seem to keep up. One minute she’s in a coma and the next, she’s awakened to a world where Emir cares about her more than she thought. Then she realized she also cares for him. Then Ayla dropped into their lives. And now Emir is teasing about more babies. His touches are driving her crazy. His attempts to kiss her are making her melt. She doesn’t know which way is up anymore. Her world has been turned upside down. He really was about to kiss her not ten minutes ago and she was too stunned to stop him. Or maybe she didn’t want to stop him. And if she’s honest, the idea of making babies with him ….

She feels the heat in her cheeks and realizes she’s blushing again. She’s grateful he’s not in the room at the moment to notice. Something tells her that wouldn’t escape his attention.

“Calm down,” she tells herself, her hands going to her stomach when she feels fluttering inside. Butterflies. She has actual butterflies thinking about him. Is this what love feels like? How could it have happened so fast?

But if she thinks about it, this has been a long time coming. Thinking back on their marriage, there was always a pull of attraction between them. No matter how much she tried to keep her heart safe from him, she’s been falling from the moment she met him. The way his mother treated her was just an excuse to keep him at arm’s length. But sometimes that wasn’t possible.

Their first night together comes to mind. She had been so terrified of what was about to happen to her. But despite his anger and resentment, he was kind to her. He took care of her that night. She thought it was going to be a promising start for them. She had even gotten up the next morning and prepared his breakfast, struggling to learn how to make the filtered coffee she heard he preferred. But as gentle and attentive as he was the night before in his bed, the complete opposite was true at the breakfast table the next morning. He was cruel. Mean. Distant. Did she do something wrong? She couldn’t help but wonder about that then. And she still can’t help but wonder about that now. Is that why he hasn’t taken back to bed? Is that why he _swore_ to never touch her again? He seems to want her now. But will he only end up pushing her away again later?

Her ringing phone shakes her from her wandering thoughts. Reaching over to see who it is, she hesitates when her uncle’s number appears on the screen. She hesitates to answer. For whatever reason, he seems to be trying to tear her and Emir apart. She remembers when she was still in the hospital in Istanbul how her uncle tried to make her think Emir didn’t want her. That he was trying to divorce her. And then again earlier today when he had visited.

_“I can make it so your marriage never existed.”_

That is no longer an option for Reyhan. Maybe at the beginning she wanted to leave. But now, she can’t imagine life without Emir. She’s just going to have to make her uncle understand that. She never wants to see that heartbroken look on Emir’s face ever again when he thought she might agree with what her uncle had said.

“Hello?” she says into the phone when she finally answers it. “Dayı? Have you made it back safely?”

“Evet, Kızım. We’re home. How are you feeling?” he asks her. “Did you think about what I said?”

“There’s nothing to think about. I’m not leaving my husband,” she tells him, making her choice clear. “I just don’t understand what’s making you be this way about Emir? We’re just trying to make a life for ourselves.”

“Kızım,” he sighs. “I hope that’s true. But I’m not convinced.”

“I am,” she interrupts him. _I love him and he loves me_ , she wants to add. But realizes they haven’t made those confessions to each other yet. Emir should be the first to hear how she feels about him.

She actually wasn’t sure how she felt until just now. Until she realized she was ready to fight everyone, even her beloved uncle, for Emir. No one is taking him away. She loves him. She just hopes she has the courage to tell him one day soon.

“Trust me, Uncle,” she continues. “And trust Emir. This is what we want. Some time away from everything and everyone will do us good.”

“You mean Cavidan. And her tricks.” Hikmet lets out another sigh. “Kızım, I’m so sorry I didn’t protect you.”

“You didn’t protect Emir, either,” she adds softly. “He was the most vulnerable to her.”

Yet another epiphany for Reyhan. In a way, Emir was Cavidan’s victim too. That realization only softens her heart even more for him. And it makes her grateful that no matter what his mother said or did, Reyhan was always able to touch some small part of his heart. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be where they are now.

“I never thought of it like that,” Hikmet admits. “I’d like to say that Cavidan hasn’t always been the way she is, but that would be a lie. She’s always been determined to beat her enemies. I just never imagined she’d consider you an enemy and go as far as she did. And I just don’t know how I can make it up to you. To either of you.”

“Just give us this time alone. Apart from everyone else. We need to heal before we can face Cavidan hanım again.”

“I understand,” Hikmet says, his voice sad but determined. “Consider it done.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“Where are you taking us?”

Reyhan glares suspiciously at her husband while trying to hold a wiggling and giggling Ayla on her lap. She’s sure they’re breaking some kind of hospital rule by having Emir push her in the wheelchair while Ayla rides on her lap. But something tells Reyhan that’s the least of the rules Emir is breaking. The mischievous look on his face tells her he’s up to something.

After her phone call with her uncle, Reyhan did manage to get some sleep. Then she met Emir and Ayla down in the hospital cafeteria for dinner. She was a little suspicious at his insistence on them not eating in the room, but she’s sure now he has some sort of plan in action. She stares next at Ayla and the little girl is so excited, but surprisingly able to keep a secret. But Reyhan tries to crack her anyway.

“Ayla,” she says, using the tone her mother used to use on her. “What is Emir abi up to? Where are we going, Tatlım?”

“We’re almost there!” Ayla giggles, clapping her little hands together. “Close your eyes, Reyhan abla!”

Not wanting to ruin the fun for Ayla, Reyhan gives Emir one last squinty eyed glare before complying with their wishes and closing her eyes. Emir pushes her a little further and she can tell when they enter a dark space. She barely holds in her laughter when she keeps hearing Emir trying to shush Ayla. Whatever these two have planned, they are certainly pleased with themselves. And it makes her happy that they’re both so happy. For the first time in a long time, she’s starting to feel like she has a family again.

“Ready, Ayla?” Emir asks before lifting Ayla off Reyhan’s lap.

A light flips on and Emir tells Reyhan to open her eyes. When she does, she can hardly believe what she’s seeing.

“Surprise!” Ayla yells, a huge smile on her face. She wiggles out of Emir’s arms and runs over to the other side of the room.

“Yavaş! Ayla, the doctor said you have to slow down!” Emir reminds the little girl. And once again Reyhan can barely hold in her laughter when the little girl begins to move in exaggerated slow motion.

“What are we going to do with her?” Emir sighs, shaking his head. But also trying to hold in his laughter.

“What am I going to do with the both of you?” Reyhan counters, looking around the room. She can’t believe that the two of them did all this behind her back. “Emir, what is this place?”

“It’s our new room. A family room,” he explains. He reaches out a hand to her and helps her up out of the wheelchair so that she can explore. There’s no need to remind her to go slow because she can’t move very fast yet.

“This looks like a hotel,” she marvels, continuing to look around. With the exception of the area in the corner that’s obviously used for medical examinations and treatments, the rest of the room looks like it could be in a five star hotel. “How did you do this?”

“You have to remember this is a clinic that specializes in illnesses that may require long term care. I just had to speak to whoever was in charge and let them know we needed the extra space so we could all stay together. Both you and Ayla should be released within the next few days anyway. As soon as I can get the private nurse lined up, I’ll be taking both of you home.”

“Both of us?” Reyhan spins around to face him when she realizes what he said. “You mean …”

“Defne called earlier,” he says with a smile. “She’s bringing the paperwork for us to sign tomorrow.”

“We can keep Ayla?” Reyhan jumps into his arms with more strength than he realized she had, her arms hugging him tightly.

“This is the start of a very long process,” he cautions her. “We’ll start with fostering. Once we get out of the hospital, they’ll come and inspect the house and interview us officially. Then after a few months, we’ll be eligible to adopt her if it’s what we all want. But yes. For now, she’s ours.”

“Wow,” is all she says. She starts to wobble on her still weak legs and Emir helps her to the very large bed that’s even bigger than the one they used to have back in Istanbul. He settles her on one side and then gets himself comfortable on the other side. Ayla runs over - despite the warning glare from Emir - and demands to join them in the middle. She turns to cuddle with Reyhan.

“Aww. Baby Girl.” Reyhan brushes her hair off her forehead and places a kiss there.

Emir leans over to do the same to Reyhan. He wraps his arms around them both as a feeling of peace like he’s never known settles over him. This is everything he never knew he wanted. But now that he has his precious little family, he knows that he will fight to the death to keep it. As he drifts off to sleep, his entire world in his arms, he can only pray that it won’t come to that. He plans on living a long, long life with his girls. He pities anyone who tries to take them away from him. Even his own mother. Because something tells him she’s going to be trouble.


	12. Chapter 12

Reyhan sighs contentedly and sinks deeper into the best warmth she’s felt in a while. She doesn’t recall her pillow being this comfortable. Its arms wrap around her and her eyes snap open when she realizes that pillows don’t normally have arms.

“Good morning, Sunshine.”

She looks up into Emir’s smiling eyes. It takes her a few seconds to process where she is. Still the hospital. But a new room. She remembers now how they all fell asleep together. But now, she finds herself alone in the bed with Emir.

“Ayla? Where’s Ayla?”

The little girl had served as a much needed barrier between them last night. But she’s nowhere in sight now.

“She’s already had her check up this morning and got her medication. Everything is good with her, so the nurses took her to the play room for a bit,” Emir explains. “She still has a couple of friends there from before. She was pretty happy to see them.”

“Oh,” Reyhan nods. She sits up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and turning her back on Emir. She’s still trying to recover from waking up wrapped up in his arms and can’t bear to look at him just yet. “Are my doctors coming here to see me?”

“No, we’ll get you dressed and take you straight to your therapy. The doctor will check in with you there.”

He climbs out the other side of the bed and stops to stretch, letting out a loud yawn while he’s at it. Reyhan feels bad for him. He’s been so busy working and staying at the hospital with her, and now Ayla. He can’t have been getting much rest. This must be the first time he’s slept in an actual bed in awhile. The sacrifices he’s made for her are really starting to sink in. Just when she thinks her heart can’t belong to him anymore, something like this plants him there even more firmly.

“Let’s get you up and changed,” he says when he comes to stand in front of her.

The panicked look in her eyes hurts a little, but he understands.

“You want me to get the nurse?” he asks, stroking her cheek with a finger until she looks up at him. She just nods. He kneels down so that he can look her straight in the eyes.

“Listen, I know this is new for both of us. We have to get used to each other. Take as long as you need, Reyhan. I’m not going anywhere. Okay?”

“I guess I’m just still surprised that you want this,” she says quietly. “With me.”

“I do,” he assures her. “But only what you’re willing to give me.”

He gives her another smile before standing up and kissing her on the forehead. He takes her hand and kisses that too. Then he surprises her by turning her hand over, slowly and sensually kissing the inside of her wrist. And she briefly wonders why she suddenly can’t breathe.

“But,” he adds, his grin turning slightly wicked as he rubs the spot he just kissed. “One of these days I will be kissing and tasting every inch of this delectable skin. So get ready. I’ll get to see how far this beautiful blush goes.”

“Emir!” she squeaks out in shock when he sneaks one more kiss, this time on her neck.

After, she just shakes her head. She’s oddly getting used to some of his outlandishly suggestive comments. And even all the kisses and touches. They make her feel … _desired_. Yes. Desired is a good word. For too long he pushed her away and made her feel inadequate and unwanted.

“What?” He gives a fake innocent look that makes her laugh. “Okay, okay. I’m going.”

He calls in the nurse and leaves to give them privacy.

“Well you’re all red and smiling,” the nurse teases her. “Your husband was in a good mood too. Looks like the new room is to your liking.”

Reyhan just blushes even more. She’s going to kill Emir. If he doesn’t kill her first. She raises a hand to her racing heart, still pounding from when Emir was so near. One day he’ll make it burst right out of her chest.

“He’s certainly a handful,” Reyhan finally says once she has her heart under control.

“He’s sweet. He really loves you. You should have seen him when you were in your coma. He never left your side,” the nurse says with a sigh. “You had all the nurses jealous of you. Who wouldn’t want a man that devoted? Your man is one of the good ones. He reminds me of my late husband.”

“My condolences,” Reyhan adds, giving the woman’s hand a pat.

“Sağol, Kızım,” the nurse says. “It’s been years, but I still miss him every day. You make sure you appreciate that man while you have him, you hear? Life is too short. I think he knows that now after almost losing you. Don’t waste the time you’re given.”

Or the second chances. Reyhan is lucky. She has a second chance not only in life, but also in love. She can’t throw it away.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The next few days pass by in a flurry of activity. Once Emir and Reyhan get the approval to take Ayla, things move quickly. With both Ayla and Reyhan still in the hospital, but set to be released soon, Emir needs all the help he can get preparing the house for them both. That’s how Zafer finds himself back in Ankara and doing last minute painting of a bedroom in a pale lilac color. Ayla’s favorite color. He met the girl in the hospital earlier and he’s not ashamed to admit that his new little niece has him wrapped around her tiny fingers. He was more than happy to paint her room whatever color she wanted.

Painting done, he now just has to wait on the furniture delivery to arrive. Ayla’s bed was a special order and took longer to arrive than the other furniture. The delivery is set to arrive any minute. He’s in the middle of changing his dirty shirt with paint splotches when he hears the doorbell ring. Must be the delivery men.

“Come on in,” he yells as he bends down into his bag for a new shirt. He’s pulling the shirt over his head when he hears the door open and a gasp.

“Oh my,” a soft voice says.

Not a delivery man. He quickly finishes putting on the shirt to greet the unexpected visitor.

“Can I help you?” he asks the flustered woman standing in the doorway. He can hardly blame her for not wanting to come into a house with a half naked man. “Sorry. I had paint on my shirt and I thought you were here with the furniture delivery.”

“Um … I’m Defne,” she says, trying to avoid looking at him. “I’m Ayla’s social worker.”

“Oh! Defne hanim. Of course,” Zafer says, holding out his hand to introduce himself. “I’m Zafer.”

“Emir’s friend. Right. He said you’d be here,” she says with a nod, finally looking at him when she realizes he’s fully dressed.

Zafer can only wonder why Emir didn’t tell him that Defne would be there. Or that she was so pretty. Now that she’s finally looking at him, he’s noticing that her eyes are kind of hypnotic.

“Before Ayla can be officially placed here, there’s going to have to be a house inspection. I came to take a quick look around to make sure there won’t be any surprises for Emir and Reyhan,” Defne explains. “We all want this placement to go off without a hitch.”

“Then by all means … inspect away.”

Zafer gives her his most dazzling smile. He gets a bit of an ego boost when she blushes again.

By the time Defne has gone through the house making notes of things to fix before the official inspection, the furniture has arrived. She helps Zafer and the delivery men place everything where it needs to be. Then she stays to help Zafer finish setting up the room so that Reyhan won’t have to worry about doing things like washing the bed linen and making the bed. When they’re done, they take a step back and marvel at their work. The room looks like every little girl’s dream.

“Ayla is going to love this,” Defne says with a smile. “She’s going to love it here. Your friends seem like good people. They’re going to be good for her.”

“They’re the best,” Zafer agrees. “They’re so excited about getting Ayla. She’s going to be good for them too. She’s going to make them the family they deserve to be. I’m happy for Emir.”

“Jealous?” Defne gives him a knowing little grin.

“Me? No,” Zafer denies. Almost too vehemently. “This life isn’t for me. I can’t see myself with a wife and kid. No offense.”

She just laughs.

“Why would that offend me? I happen to agree with you,” she says. “Although that realization for me came a bit too late.”

“Bad experience?” Zafer guesses.

“The worst. Men like him make me think all men are terrible … no offense,” she tosses back at him.

“Ouch,” Zafer laughs. “Whoever he is, he’s giving us men a bad name. But he was a fool for hurting you. Do you want me to beat him up?”

She eyes him suspiciously.

“You don’t strike me as a fighter.”

He just laughs again.

“Maybe not. But maybe for you I would be.”

That blush again that turns her cheeks the most intriguing color. This time it makes his heart pick up its pace. He shakes his head to come to his senses, not quite understand how he got so distracted in the first place. He doesn’t even know this woman. Probably won’t ever see her again. Why does that disappoint him?

“It’s gotten late,” he says, changing the subject. “How about I drive you home.”

No, it’s best to get out of the same space as this oddly fascinating woman. Just like he told her just a few minutes ago, this isn’t a life he’s looking for. Better to end this now before either of them get any ideas otherwise.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The sigh she lets out concerns him. She had been on the phone with Defne for the past ten minutes and at first everything seemed fine. Defne had sent pictures of how Ayla’s room turned out and the room looked amazing. He’s going to have to remember to really thank Zafer. And he’s glad his friend had the thought to take Defne home. The woman was at the house as a favor to them. She shouldn’t be inconvenienced going home this late.

But a few minutes into the conversation, things somehow took a turn. Now Reyhan looks like she wants to cry. He walks over to sit next to her and puts arm around her. She sinks into him, taking the comfort.

“Well, just keep whatever is still in decent condition to use for the other kids you work with. Kids that may not have anything. We’ll get her new stuff.”

He waits until she ends the call to give her a questioning glance.

“Earlier today, Defne went to Ayla’s old foster parents to get her things,” Reyhan explains quietly, not wanting to wake Ayla. She had come back from the playroom exhausted, but happy. She fell asleep almost as soon as they got her tucked into the bed. “It wasn’t good. They had thrown everything into garbage bags and left it on the front lawn. She’s not sure yet how much is usable still.”

“That’s fine,” Emir says, kissing her on the forehead because she’s still upset. “You told her the right thing. We’ll get new things for Ayla. And we’ll buy double to donate to Defne’s organization. Defne doesn’t have to worry about the old things.”

“That’s a great idea! It feels good to be able to help other children.”

Her smile makes him melt. But he nearly passes out when she throws her arms around him and hugs him tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispers in his ear.

“For what?” he asks curiously.

“For reminding me everyday how wonderful you are. And how lucky I am to be married to you.”

He just smiles and shakes his head before grabbing her face.

“You asked for this,” is his only warning before pressing a gentle, but quick kiss to her lips.

“You can’t say stuff like that without it affecting me,” he explains, briefly resting his forehead against hers to continue to breathe her in.

As expected, her cheeks turn that beautiful shade of blush that thrills him. He has to stop himself from kissing them too. He doesn’t want to scare her completely. He just wants to keep her off her guard a little. The more she realizes she has to expect the unexpected with him, the more comfortable she’ll become with the intimacy he’s craving.

“Anyway,” he says, trying to change the subject to give her a little time to recover. “We can shop online for some of the basics.”

He reaches over for his tablet and pulls up a popular kids clothing site.

“Tomorrow I’ll order you a debit card for our checking account so that you can get whatever else she needs,” he continues, not noticing when she goes pale.

“Emir … wait.” She’s visibly upset now. “Just stop a minute.”

He’s confused when he notices her distress.

“I don’t want the card. It caused trouble last time. Trouble we barely survived,” she reminds him.

He just nods and sighs.

“You’re right,” he agrees. “But it wasn’t because of the card. Reyhan, we had so much stacked against us back at home. Mostly my mother and the way she knew me so much better than I knew you. She knew how to play us against each other. And that’s exactly what she did.”

He puts the tablet down and turns to face her, taking her hands in his own. He needs the connection right now. He knew his mother would cause trouble for them. He just didn't think it would be this soon.

“Reyhan, my mother did a lot,” he admits with a pained grimace. “A lot more than you may realize. I’m just now understanding that from the conversations with my father and Zafer. They’ve been talking to the lawyers trying to figure out how things got so crazy in the first place. And all answers seem to lead back to my mother.”

“This has something to do with what you said before,” Reyhan guesses. “How someone made you believe terrible things about me.”

“You may have thought that I hated you and wanted you gone,” he starts. “And at first, I did want you gone. I never wanted to be married. And I resented my father for forcing this marriage. I resented you for not siding with me and telling my father you didn’t want to be married to me anymore than I wanted to be married to you. But it wasn’t long before my feelings started to change. Everything you did affected me. And sooner than I could accept, I could see us in a real marriage. One filled with love and happiness. Children. That time we spent with Masal showed me how good of a mother you’d be. I was ready to start a family.”

“But something changed,” she interrupts. “One day I felt all what you just said too. And I was happy for us. I was excited that a real marriage suddenly seemed possible. But the next day, you were cold and distant. As if I had done something.”

“You didn’t do anything. But I thought you had. After we came back from Erzurum, things were so different. My mother wasn’t happy about that. And neither was Cemre. Both women apparently thought when my father decreed I was to be married that Cemre would be that bride. When he came home with you, they weren’t happy and had been trying to get rid of you from that point on. But after Erzurum, it was clear that my feelings for you were changing. And then to top it all off, they discovered that my father had drawn up documents to give you a 10% share in the holding. My mother decided to make it look like you had tricked my father into giving you the shares and then married me for the money. That is what I saw that changed everything between us. And instead of being a decent person and talking to you about it, I decided to punish you for it.”

She lets his explanation sink in. And when she finally realizes what he’s saying, a ball of rage unleashes itself and she can’t hold it in.

“Money?” she asks, disbelief clouding her voice. “This has all been about money?”


	13. Chapter 13

She snatches her hands from his and stands to pace the floor in anger. Her therapy sessions have been making her stronger, so she makes a few passes across the floor before she begins to tire. Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of helping her, she finds her own seat and makes sure it’s far from him. She can’t let him be near or touch her. Because when he touches her, she can’t think. And right now, she needs to think.

“So when Cemre took me shopping and made me buy all that stuff? She was doing that to make me look bad?”

“She said you left your credit card at home, so she offered to pay for everything. But that you spent more than even her credit limit allowed,” Emir explains.

“That’s not what happened,” Reyhan sobs, the full realization of what Cemre and Cavidan had done finally sinking in. “I didn’t want any of that stuff. I didn’t even want to go shopping.”

“I’m sorry,” he apologizes. “Sorry that they did that. Sorry I believed them.”

He can’t stand to see her crying so he goes to her. He kneels next to her and tries to catch her eyes. But the angry fire burning in her eyes makes him feel even worse. Because she’s not just mad. She’s also hurt. He did that to her.

“And you,” she continues, stopping to wipe her cheeks. “You set me up with that dinner on the beach. You took me out there, showed me a good time, and then gave me that check. Do you know how that made me feel? Of course you do. It made me feel exactly how you wanted me to feel. Like a whore.”

“Reyhan. Don’t say that. Please,” he begs her.

“What? It’s true, isn’t it? _‘Payment … for your services’_ you said. And then you just left me there. Do you hate me that much too? Was any of that day on the beach real? Is any of this real? Are you playing me now?”

“No! Of course not!”

“How am I supposed to know what’s real and what’s not real?”

She pushes him away and gets out of the chair, moving towards the door. Leaving. Leaving him. And it makes him panic.

“Reyhan?”

“Don’t follow me,” she calls over her shoulder, hand on the door handle. “I can’t be here right now.”

“Reyhan, please. Can you just listen to me?”

He comes up behind her and covers her hand with his own, not letting her leave.

“That day on the beach was real,” he tells her. “So real that I almost forgot about my plans for revenge. But I’ll never forget that day. It was the first time we danced. I didn’t want it to end.”

She isn’t actively trying to leave anymore and he considers that a good sign. So he continues.

“I couldn’t think straight,” he confesses. “You had my mind all messed up. I didn’t know what to believe about you. I was convinced you were running a con on me, yet I still couldn’t let you go. My heart didn’t want to let you go. But my pride got in the way. And we both ended up paying the heavy price of that pride.”

She turns around and faces him, tears still streaming down her face.

“I’m so sorry I hurt you,” he says, still apologizing. “I’m sorry I let them hurt you. I’m sorry I didn’t have your back the way a husband should. But I can promise you I’ll have your back now. I’ll be there to protect you against anything. Even my mother. I won’t let them hurt you again. I don’t ever want to see your eyes filled with tears again. Just say it isn’t too late.”

When he reaches out to her and she no longer pulls away from him, he considers that another good sign. When he holds out his arms, she falls into them and he can’t help but be relieved. She buries her face in his neck, still crying. But she doesn’t seem to be angry anymore. Just sad. And that breaks his heart even more.

“Oh, Baby,” he sighs. “I was so stupid. Can you ever forgive me?”

“Why would they do this?” she asks tearfully. “Why do they hate me?”

“They hate you because I … because I love you,” he manages to say.

Her little gasp of surprise brings a small smile to his lips.

“Emir?”

“Shhh! I’m just putting it out there. I just want you to know. Just take it in for now. We’ll figure it all out later,” he reassures her. “Just say that you’re willing to stay in this with me. Just say that you’ll be patient with me. That you’ll forgive me when I mess up.”

She lets out a heavy sigh before looking up at him.

“It wasn’t your fault. Your mother and Cemre started all this.”

“But how I acted, how I treated you … that’s on me. But you have my word,” he swears. “You have my vow that I will never do that again. When we have problems, they will stay between us. And we’ll work them out. My mother wants to hurt me. Cemre wants to hurt me. But you, I trust with my heart. I know now that you won’t do anything to hurt me on purpose.”

“Not if I can help it,” she promises in return. “That’s my vow to you too, Emir.”

He smiles at her and hugs her.

“As long as we keep these promises then nothing can come between us.”

“Your mother terrifies me,” Reyhan whispers. “If she wants me gone, I’m afraid that she won’t stop until I’m gone.”

His mother scares him too. But Emir isn’t going to let anything happen to Reyhan. His mother will lose him before he’d ever let Reyhan go. He just hopes it won’t come down to that.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Defne thanks Zafer for the ride and gets out of the car. She waves him off, but he insists on waiting until she gets inside. Just as she’s about to put her key into the lock, a man steps out of the darkness and startles her. He had been waiting for her.

“Fatih!” she says, putting a hand to her chest. “You scared me. What are you doing here? And why? You walked out on me months ago and I haven’t heard one word from you since.”

Looking at him now, Defne doesn’t know what she ever saw in him. Sure he’s good looking and has a good job and nice car. And at first he treated her well. Or so she thought. Unfortunately ‘faithful’ doesn’t turn out to be one of his character traits.

“Babe, let’s talk,” he says, making her skin crawl even more. She can’t believe she ever let this guy touch her. She can’t believe she thought she would marry him.

“About what? About how you left me for Burcu? Or about how she left you for someone else?” Defne asks, folding her arms defensively across her chest. “I don’t care about anything you have to say. And I don’t have anything to say to you. So just go.”

“She didn’t leave me. I’m the one who sent her packing,” Fatih claims. “She lied about the baby.”

She just shakes her head and turns her back on him. She’s done talking. She was done talking months ago when he left.

But apparently he’s not done with her. He grabs her arm and tries to pull her back to him which makes her begin to struggle with him. Too tired to fight with him, she begins to fear that her struggles are in vain.

“Is there a problem here?”

Zafer comes up behind them and surprises them both. He walks to Defne’s side and stands between her and Fatih. Fatih is forced to let go of Defne’s arm.

“Are you okay?” Zafer asks Defne, concerned at the fear he sees in her eyes. “Is this guy bothering you?”

“ _This guy_ is her fiance,” Fatih spits out. “Why don’t you just leave us alone, Pal.”

“Ex fiance,” Defne corrects him.

“Ahh. The mistake,” Zafer says, understanding dawning. He’s the jerk she was talking about earlier. “You need me to take care of him? My offer still stands.”

Defne just laughs and shakes her head, remembering how Zafer offered to beat up Fatih for her. She’s amazed how this guy she just met can turn this nightmare into something that makes her smile.

“No need to fight,” she says, giving Zafer an easy smile. “Fatih has already lost. There’s nothing here for him.”

“Nothing here? You weren’t saying that three months ago when you claimed I was your baby’s father. So were you just lying like your little friend?”

Defne goes pale. She was hoping he had forgotten. She places her hand on her still flat belly as if to shield her unborn child from her ex.

“Just leave, Fatih,” she begs. “We have nothing left to discuss.”

“Or is this guy the father?” Fatih guesses. “Were you messing around behind my back?”

Zafer starts to worry when Defne begins to shake. This guy is really rattling her. He needs to help.

“Looks like you figured us out,” Zafer says, slipping an arm around Defne’s waist. Not only to hold her up, because she looks about ready to collapse. But also to give Fatih the impression they’re a couple. “Maybe you should go, like the lady asked.”

“Fine. But you’ll be back,” Fatih snarls at Defne. “You’ll be back when you miss all the things I could buy for you. But don’t bring the kid with you. I’m not taking care of anyone else’s brat.”

With that, Fatih storms off.

“What a nightmare,” Defne groans, leaning into Zafer’s side before she realizes what she’s doing. “I’m so sorry for pulling you into this mess. But Fatih is gone now, thanks to you. That should be the last I see of him.”

“Do you mind my asking what’s going on?” Zafer asks, leading her to the swing on her porch and sitting with her. “He’s the jerk ex, I presume?”

“Fatih left when I told him I was pregnant,” Defne starts, figuring Zafer deserves to know the truth. “He didn’t believe me because my best friend Burcu stole my test and told him it was hers. Because, unbeknownst to me, he was sleeping with her too. Word out on the street is that she found a guy even richer than Fatih and left him after confessing she lied about the baby.”

“Those two sound like they deserve each other,” Zafer says. “You’re better off without him.”

“Definitely,” Defne agrees, caressing her belly. “My baby and I will be just fine on our own.”

Zafer looks down at her stomach uncomfortably. He hadn’t known she was pregnant. Now that he does, he doesn’t know what to think.

“Don’t get that look on your face,” she teases him. “Mister anti-wife and anti-family.”

“I didn’t say those were bad things. Just not for me,” Zafer clarifies. But she just keeps laughing at him.

“You’re panicking,” she points out. “But I’m the same Defne you met a couple of hours ago. And neither of us are looking for a relationship. Remember?”

“Yeah, in your case, I can see why.” He laughs when she playfully punches him.

“Brief lapse in judgement with that one. I don’t know what I was thinking,” she admits. “He’s trash. But you’re not, Zafer bey. You seem like a decent guy. Thanks for helping me tonight.”

“You helped me with Ayla’s room,” he shrugs. “We’re even.”

After an awkward silence, Zafer looks at his watch.

“Um, are you going to be okay? I mean, that guy isn’t going to come back tonight, is he?”

“Fatih? Definitely not. Running is what he does best,” she says, rolling her eyes. “But it is late. I should go in.”  
  


He nods, standing up when she does. She shakes her head, laughing internally at his persistence, but then goes inside when she realizes he’s not leaving until she’s in the house. She has to admit, the man has impeccable manners.

“Good night, Zafer,” she calls from the door.

“Good night, Defne.”

With a final wave, he finally turns to leave. He can’t stop himself from taking one last look at what he’s leaving behind. If she were any other girl, he might have talked her into letting him stay. But despite her current predicament, he doesn’t think she’s that kind of girl. This girl is special. He can feel it. She’s a girl like Reyhan. A girl you marry.

When the thought of marriage doesn’t repulse him like it normally does, he realizes it’s time to get far, far away from Defne. He loves Emir, but the last thing he needs is to end up like him. So what if the guy seems happier than ever. Or that he has a wonderful woman to love him and take care of him. To support him and fill his solitary days with joy. And his cold bed with warmth. He doesn’t need any of that.

“Your life is perfect as it is, Zafer,” he tells himself. But no longer sure he believes it.

With a sigh, he takes one last look at Defne’s house and then drives away. All the while trying to figure out how his “perfect” life suddenly seems more lonely than he remembers.


	14. Chapter 14

“Emir! Put me down!”

Reyhan’s objections are met with laughter from her mischievous husband.

“What kind of groom would I be if I didn’t carry my bride into our new home?”

This new affectionate version of Emir really keeps her off balance. But if she’s honest with herself, she kind of loves it. He makes her feel special now. Loved. Complete. Like her heart finally found its perfect match. She lets out a contented sigh and rests her head on his shoulder. And she’s disappointed, despite her earlier protest, when he sets her down once they’re inside the house.

“What do you think?” he asks, a huge smile on his face.

She looks around in awe. The house is beautiful. And somehow exactly what she would have picked. She’s amazed that he either knows her that well or their tastes match so perfectly.

“I love it,” she whispers, finding it hard to speak through the unexpected tears. “This is exactly what I would have chosen.”

Ayla lets out a loud shriek when she finds her room, making Reyhan’s tears turn into giggles.

“It sounds like she likes the house too,” she says with a smile.

“You think?” Emir laughs, taking Reyhan’s hand and pulling her towards Ayla’s room. He doesn’t let go when they get there, so the two just stand there holding hands while they watch the little girl run around looking at everything. Again, they’re amused by her excitement.

She stops abruptly when she sees a picture on the dresser. It’s a picture of the three of them from the hospital. Defne had taken it the day they signed the papers to be able to get custody of Ayla.

“We look like a family,” Ayla says, her little voice filled with emotion.

Emir walks over to her and stoops down to her level.

“That’s because we are a family, Aylacığım,” he tells her. “If you want, we want you to stay with us forever. If you let us, we want to be your anne and baba.”

“Really?” her eyes widen in surprise as she looks over at Reyhan, unable to believe what Emir is saying.

“It’s true,” Reyhan says with a smile, wiping away a stray tear that sneaks through. “But I’ve never been a mother before. I hope I can be a good one for you.”

Another shriek from Ayla and then she goes running to Reyhan, the force of the girl crashing into her almost knocking her off her feet. Ayla throws her arms around Reyhan’s legs and holds on tight. Again Reyhan struggles to hold in her tears. Emir comes to stand next to them and wraps her arm around Reyhan in comfort, giving her a quick kiss on the forehead.

“Anne?” Ayla calls, looking up at Reyhan.

“Yes, Aylacığım?” Reyhan answers, not sure how she manages it through all her emotions.

“Nothing,” Ayla says, a wide smile spreading across her face. “Just checking to make sure you answer.”

The little girl skips off to examine more of her new toys.

“We’ve been accepted and dismissed,” Emir says, amused by the little girl’s quirky personality. “But she seems happy.”

“She does, doesn’t she?” Reyhan smiles, still wiping away tears. Without noticing, she’s leaned more into Emir’s embrace and has wrapped her own arms around him.

They stay with Ayla for a few minutes, but then Emir is taking her hand again and pulling her from the room towards another room.

“This is our bedroom,” he announces, trying to sound carefree. But he sneaks a glance in her direction to see he’s scared her. But he sees that she’s too busy looking around. The room is large and spacious, with a huge bed in the center. This bed, like the bed at the hospital, is much larger than their bed at home. It has tall posts and white, airy curtains all around. Like with Ayla, Reyhan’s attention falls on a picture on the dresser.

“Our wedding picture,” she says, stroking her finger across the image.

“I had Suna send it,” he explains. “I hope it’s okay.”

“It’s perfect,” she whispers, turning to him. “All of this is perfect, Emir. It feels like a real home. It feels like _us_.”

She takes a few tentative steps towards him, but before she can think too hard about it, she closes the gap between them and falls into his arms for a hug.

He instantly wraps his arms around her, not wanting her to end the hug too quickly. It feels good having her there. It feels even better when she seems to almost melt into him. This is one way he can touch her and she doesn’t seem to mind. But after a few moments, he knows he has to let her go. He’s fine with the baby steps for now. She can take as long as she needs to be comfortable with him.

“I’m going to go check on Ayla,” he says as she steps away from him. “Why don’t you look around and make sure everything is to your liking. And you can let me know if you need anything else.”

She nods and lets him leave, feeling strangely colder without his warmth. She’s finding she’s getting used to being in his arms. She’s finding she really _likes_ being in his arms. She glances over at the bed and remembers the nights in the hospital and the bed they shared there. She feels her cheeks heat at the realization that they will be sharing this bed now.

_“One of these days I will be kissing and tasting every inch of this delectable skin. So get ready. I’ll get to see how far this beautiful blush goes,”_ he had warned her. Or was it a promise? In any event, the thought doesn’t completely terrify her anymore. The pounding in her chest isn’t terror, it’s excitement. Well, maybe with a little terror thrown in.

“He makes me lose my breath,” she says out loud, fanning her face to cool the blush in her cheeks. She can’t let him see her this way.

She decides to take a shower to wash off the hospital. She had been there so long that it will feel like heaven to get a really good shower. She searches the drawers and closets for clothes and finds a variety of things. When she first moved from Erzurum to the mansion, they had given her such formal clothes. And she notices a few of those similar dresses here. But there’s also more casual choices as well. Tunics and leggings. Sweaters and jeans. Sundresses and cardigans. These all seem more her style and once again, she finds herself smiling at how well Emir seems to know her.

And it’s at that moment that it hits her … this is her life now. She has a home. She’s a wife. She’s a mother. And she’s happy. So very happy. Cavidan is far away and can’t hurt her anymore. Leaving home and following her uncle halfway across the country to marry a man she had never met was the biggest risk she had ever taken. And it’s turned out to be the biggest reward. She’s living a life she never even dreamed and she’s happier than she could have ever imagined.

She sends up a silent prayer that she doesn’t take it for granted and that she doesn’t do anything to lose it. That she can be bold and brave and defend what’s now hers. Because now that she has it all, she knows that losing it will be unbearable. And she can’t let that happen. She never fought Cavidan or Cemre before. But she will now. She has too much to risk them taking it away. If they come up against her now, it will be war. This is her family. And she’ll do anything to protect it.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

They spend the rest of the day getting to know the house and getting settled into a family type of routine. Reyhan finally stops tearing up after about the fourteenth time Ayla calls her _anne_ , having finally gotten used to hearing it. Dinner was a fun experiment in discovering what Ayla likes to eat. Reyhan had sent Emir to the store to get a variety of foods to offer the little girl. Fortunately the child has no allergies, so they were able to really have some fun.

But by the end of the day, after all the excitement, Ayla has exhausted herself and is out like a light after two bedtime stories. Reyhan isn’t far behind. She did a lot for her first day out of the hospital, so Emir wasn’t surprised to see her fast asleep when he got out of the shower. He can’t help but smile at her choice of pajamas. It’s the top to the set of pajamas he had planned on wearing to bed. She only left him the bottoms. He pulls on those bottoms and goes to his drawer for a plain t-shirt, but changes his mind. He decides to just sleep shirtless.

With a yawn, he turns off the light and climbs in the bed next to her. She doesn’t know this, but while they were in the hospital, she had a habit of turning to him and burrowing into his side, her leg carelessly thrown over his. She’d always wake up surprised to be wrapped around him, not realizing she’s the one who did all the wrapping. And sure enough, like clockwork, once he gets settled, she rolls over and gets into her usual position. Her warm, rhythmic breathing on his neck lulls him into a deep, peaceful sleep with her.

When morning morning comes, she wakes first. And as usual, she can’t help but wonder how he pulls her to him while she’s asleep without her waking up. Every morning since they changed rooms at the hospital, she wakes up to find herself practically wrapped around Emir. They fit together like puzzle pieces and sometimes she’s reluctant to separate. This morning is no exception.

While he’s still sleeping, she decides to take a good look at him. She smiles at how long his eyelashes are. Most women would be jealous of the length and wonder why such lashes were wasted on a man. But to her, they fit his strong face perfectly. She moves down to his cheeks where those dimples usually tease her. She’s struck with the sudden urge to kiss those dimples to life, but manages to refrain.

Her eyes widen when she notices he’s shirtless. She must have let out an audible gasp because when she looks up, his eyes are now open.

“Sorry,” she quickly apologizes, lifting the arm that’s casually slung across his chest.

“Don’t move. It’s okay, you can touch me,” he practically growls, his voice rough with sleep still. He grabs her arm before she can remove it and slowly runs his hand from the elbow to her hand. Once he reaches her hand, he takes it and moves it back to his chest, holding it there when she tenses. She only hesitates for a minute before starting to stroke the light spattering of hair there. She moves first across the wide expanse of this chest and then allows her fingers to dance down his abs. He inhales sharply when her fingers dip into his navel.

“You’re about to get into dangerous territory,” he warns her, covering her hand with his own to stop any further movement south. He lifts their joined hands to his mouth and presses a kiss to her fingers. Then he lifts his hand to sweep her hair out of her face and tuck it behind her ear. With a clear path, he leans forward to press a kiss to the side of her neck. Her giggle surprises him.

“Your beard tickles,” she says, still laughing.

She realizes her mistake in admitting she’s ticklish when his eyes take on that mischievous glint again. She barely has time to roll onto her back to try to get away before his fingers attack her sides.

“Emir,” she squeaks, trying to get away from him and his tickling. “Stop!”

He crawls after her, but she manages to get out of the bed before he can reach her again. Laughing, she almost makes it to the door before he catches her, lifting her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. He walks her back to the bed and dumps her there. She’s laid out on her back and he steps between her legs, leaning over her with his hands on either side of her head. They’re both breathing hard from all the activity.

“Now that I’ve caught you, whatever shall I do with you?” he asks. But the flash of fear in her eyes lets him know he’s pushed her as far as she’s willing to go. So he just gives her a quick little kiss on her nose and stands up to let her go free. “I’m going to go check on Ayla.”

She’s half relieved when he leaves. But she’s also partly disappointed in herself for being such a coward. Didn’t she decide just the day before to be bolder. To be braver. To fight for her family. She won’t have a family if she pushes her husband away.

“Aptal,” she scolds herself. She sits up from where Emir left her and climbs back into the bed. She’s just getting under the covers when the door opens and Emir appears with a still sleepy Ayla in his arms.

“Someone wanted to say good morning,” he says.

Emir brings Ayla and they both climb in the bed with Reyhan. Ayla crawls to her and cuddles with her.

“Günaydın, anne,” she says with a yawn, laying her head on Reyhan’s chest. A few seconds later, they hear smooth and rhythmic breathing to indicate she’s fallen back asleep.

“She just wanted snuggles,” Emir whispers, stroking Ayla’s hair.

Reyhan bites her lip and looks at him, apology in her eyes.

“She’s not the only one, is she? But I keep pushing you away. I’m sorry. I don’t mean to, I just …”

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” he stops her, not letting her feel bad about this. “Take as long as you need.”

“Come here,” she says with a smile, motioning him closer until his face is right next to hers. She indulges in her urge from before and places a kiss right where her favorite dimple should be. “That is for being so patient.”

The kiss works and she’s rewarded with a full smile from him, dimples included. She leans over and kisses the other cheek.

“And that is because I love these dimples,” she admits.

A surprised laugh comes out of him and she has to cover his mouth to keep him quiet or risk waking Ayla. He kisses her hand before she removes it and pulls her into his arms.

“You really tempt me like no other, Reyhan hanım,” he says, leaning down to kiss the top of her head.

She gazes up at him, a sleepy, dreamy expression on her face. It’s more than he can take.

“And stop looking at me like that. It’s that look that always gets me in trouble with you,” he admits with an uneasy laugh.

“Maybe a little trouble won’t be so bad,” she says. She nervously licks her lips.

Hope flickers in his heart. But he tries to convince himself to go slow. With the buffer of Ayla between them, he senses she feels safer.

“Let’s try this,” he suggests, his voice quiet and raspy. “Close your eyes … if you trust me.”

She gives him a gentle smile and lifts her hand to his cheek.

“I trust you.”

He starts there and kisses the hand on his cheek. When she closes her eyes, he runs a finger across her eyelashes. He follows that with a kiss on each eye.

“You are so precious,” he whispers. “I just want to show you how much I adore you.”

He runs a finger down her nose before pressing a little kiss there as well.

“Still doing okay?” he asks her, making sure she’s comfortable.

She opens her eyes to look at him again, tears in her eyes this time. She just nods. Then sighs her contentment when he kisses the tears off her cheeks. He slides to the corner of her mouth and her breath hitches. Without realizing what she’s going, she turns her head just enough so their lips make contact. It’s like an electric shot zapping through her body. She’s breathless when he pulls away.

“How was …”

He doesn’t get the rest of his question out. She leans in for another kiss, going straight for the mouth she suddenly can’t get enough of. She’s lightheaded when he pulls away again.

“Wow,” she says, causing him to laugh.

“I’ll take wow.”

“I can see now why you always want to do that,” she admits, making him laugh even harder. “You, Emir bey, might actually become my first addiction.”

She rests her head on his shoulder. All of this is becoming an addiction. One she has to keep safe. Because she doesn’t know what she’d do if she ever lost any of it.

Emir’s thoughts mirror Reyhan’s. He holds tight to everything in his arms, realizing they’re his whole world now. His whole life. He’s going to protect them with everything he has.


	15. Chapter 15

When the weekend arrives, Emir and Reyhan decide to go out for a little while and do some shopping. Ayla doesn’t really need anything, but they love the look on her face whenever they give her something new. As a child growing up without much, she’s so appreciative of everything they do for her. And they still buy extra to donate where Defne works, as promised.

“We can send this stuff to Defne later in the week,” Emir tells her, adding another bag to his already heavy load. “But for right now, I’m going to take it out to the car. Why don’t you and Ayla wait for me in the food court? Are you hungry?”

“Not really. But I am tired,” she admits. The constant fatigue is the one thing remaining from her illness. And she hasn’t really gotten her appetite back. Emir, bless his heart, tries to feed her constantly because she lost a lot of weight while in the hospital. She does her best for him. She wants to be a strong wife for him. A healthy mother for Ayla.

“Maybe we should just go,” he suggests, a concerned look crossing his face. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she smiles up at him. “Like you said. Ayla and I will go get some lunch and wait for you.”

“Did someone say lunch?”

They turn around and find Defne has joined their group. They haven’t seen her since they left the hospital. Reyhan is actually relieved to see a friendly face. It would be nice to have someone to talk to living in this new, unfamiliar city.

After hugs and greetings, it is agreed that Defne will join them for lunch. Emir heads to the car to drop off the packages and the ladies head to get food.

“How have you been really?” Defne asks after they get settled at their table. “You look good.”

“I’m getting there,” Reyhan tells her. “Ayla has been such joy, though. Even when I do feel a little tired or get a little down, she’s there with a hug and a kiss and it picks me right up. She’s amazing.”

“She looks happy,” Defne says, stroking the little girl’s cheek. The soft, baby smooth skin makes her yearn for her own baby. A baby that will be coming soon and Defne with no real plan to take care of it. Despite what she told Zafer, she’s terrified she won’t be able to care for her child. She’s afraid her father may force her to marry Fatih. Those two have been planning something and Defne has been doing her best to avoid them.

“How about you?” Reyhan asks. “Your mood just turned a little. I know we don’t really know each other that well, but you can talk to me. I’m a good listener.”

“I may just take you up on that offer one day,” Defne replies. “Just … not today.”

She tilts her head towards Ayla, not wanting to talk about serious stuff around the child.

“Anytime, Defne. I mean it,” Reyhan says, patting the other woman’s hand. “I didn’t get a chance to make any friends in Istanbul. So it would be nice to have a friend here in Ankara.”

“Oh,” Defne says, her eyes going wide as she looks at something in the distance. “So I’m guessing she’s not one of your friends.”

Reyhan turns around to see what has Defne’s attention and spots a woman talking to Emir. Standing very close to him. Jealousy she never knew she had starts to build. The word _mine_ bounces around inside her brain.

“No. I don’t know her,” Reyhan admits warily. “But it seems like Emir does.”

She gives the woman a good look from head to toe. Very contemporary. Very modern. Reyhan looks down at her simple outfit that’s practically hanging off her too thin frame and feels somewhat lesser.

“I think you should go introduce yourself,” Defne urges her. “I’ll keep an eye on Ayla. You go keep an eye on your man.”

“Defne!”

“Reyhan!” she says in the same tone before ordering, “Go! I’m serious!”

“I trust Emir,” Reyhan tells her new friend.

“Yeah, but do you trust that woman?”

Not at all, Reyhan decides. Defne is right. The woman needs to see her. She needs to know that getting to Emir will require going through Reyhan.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“What are you doing here, Melisa?”

Emir’s focus had been solely on this family sitting across the way that he didn’t even notice when this woman stepped into his path. He was about to mutter a simple “excuse me” and go around her when she had spoken. Her voice had sent chills up his spine. And not in a good way.

“Emir Tarhun. It’s been awhile.”

He had stopped in his path and looked up at her, disgust and disbelief evident in his eyes. This is the one person who if he had never seen again in all his life, it would have been too soon.

“Not long enough, Melisa. Now, if you will excuse me.”

He tries to walk past her, but she reaches out and grabs his arm. He pulls from her grasp.

“What are you doing here?” he asks her again. “If I recall correctly, _I don’t ever want to see you again_ was the last thing I said to you.”

“Come on, Emir. We were practically children back then. A lot has changed.” She takes a step closer. He takes two steps away from her.

“Yes. A lot has changed. I have a wife now. A family. I’m a different person.”

“Ah, yes. The wife I’ve heard so much about. Where is she? I’d love to meet her,” Melisa says with a cold smile.

What does she mean, she’s heard about Reyhan? From who? And how did she know where to find him anyway? Only one person comes to mind … his mother. He’s about to ask Melisa about that when Reyhan comes up. He curses to himself, not wanting to have subjected Reyhan to this.

“Emir? Are you coming to eat?” Reyhan asks, looking back and forth between him and Melisa. “Who’s this?”

Melisa puts on her fake smile again and holds out her hand.

“You must be Reyhan. Nice to meet you. I’m Melisa. Emir and I are … old friends,” she says, after adding enough of a pause between the words to have Reyhan’s eyebrows lifting. She turns the look on Emir.

“We were nothing,” Emir interjects quickly, to keep Reyhan from getting the wrong idea. But he fears the damage has already been done. He can see the questions and doubts swimming in her eyes. He’s going to have to tell her everything about a past he wanted nothing but to forget.

“Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Melisa,” Reyhan says in a tone of voice Emir has never heard before. She’s never been nothing but nice. Never so much as raised her voice all those times he was so cruel to her. But this is a different Reyhan. “But if you’ll excuse us, our lunch is getting cold. Maybe we’ll see you later?”

Emir has to hold back a laugh at the look on Melisa’s face. She didn’t expect his wife to have teeth of her own and to all but dismiss her. Neither did Emir, if he’s being honest. But he has to admit … he likes it. This tough side of her is rather appealing.

“You heard the boss, Melisa,” Emir says with a grin and a shrug, throwing an arm over Reyhan’s shoulder. “We’re going to be going now.”

He waves at her as Reyhan practically drags him away. Once they get far enough away, he pulls her to a stop.

“Hold on a minute.” He finds a secluded spot for them to talk without risk of anyone hearing. “That wasn’t what you think.”

“I certainly hope not! Because what I think is that your ex was trying to make a move on you right in front of my face.”

“She’s not my ex,” Emir quickly throws in. “I mean, not really. She may have thought there was something between us, but it was all one sided. Mostly.”

And there’s the look again. Except this time when it’s focused on him, it scares him a little. He never realized his wife was so fierce.

“Okay, look. We kind of dated, mostly because our families thought it would be an advantageous pairing. But it didn’t last long on my part. She never got the message we were broken up, though. And the last I saw her was when she was leaving for an internship in America. I gave up the chance to go because I didn’t want to be there with her. So trust me, she is not someone I want to walk down memory lane with.”

He squirms under her intense gaze. But she eventually seems satisfied with what she sees and gives him a nod.

“I trust you,” she tells him. “But _she’s_ another story. I’m not going to let her ruin us, Emir. We’ve been through enough with your mother and with Cemre. Don’t let me down, okay?”

He pulls her to him and kisses her on the forehead.

“And don’t give up on me, okay?”

She wraps her arms around him. She had put on a brave face, but she doesn’t feel very brave. She’s terrified that whoever this Melisa is, she isn’t done with them yet.

“Let’s go eat,” he says, taking her hand and leading her back to the dining area where Defne and Ayla are waiting.

Reyhan turns to look back and makes eye contact with Melisa. The woman gives her a bad feeling. This is just the beginning.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Melisa watches Emir and his little wife run away. She’s spent the better part of the past decade trying to get over him. Trying to get over the fact that he didn’t want her. She had never been rejected before and she’s never been rejected since. She’s also never wanted anything as much as she’s wanted Emir Tarhun.

“I just met your bride, Cavidan hanım,” she says into the phone to her ear. “She’s nothing like you said. She’s smart and sharp. And she’s determined to hold on to him. He seems just as devoted to her.”

But Melisa has plenty of tricks up her sleeve. She may have lost last time, but she won’t this time. Emir won’t be getting away from her again.

“Anything you need,” Cavidan says. “Let me know. Just get rid of that girl.”

Melisa ends the call. She won’t be needing Cavidan Tarhun. She’s going to handle this all on her own.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

There’s no more mention of Melisa the rest of the weekend and Emir is relieved. Maybe the woman will disappear just as suddenly as she appeared. Maybe he was wrong in assuming his mother had anything to do with her appearance. But he’s learned to not put anything past Cavidan Tarhun. She’s capable of anything. Especially if she’s as determined to drive Reyhan away as he thinks she is.

What he told Reyhan about his past with Melisa had been the truth. Their pairing had been mostly for their families and mostly about business. Emir and Melisa had never really been friends. They were mostly just dinner companions at company events. Their parting made barely a ripple. As far as everyone knew, Melisa went to America for an internship and Emir didn’t. And that was the end of the whole “relationship” as far as society was concerned. Melisa took a bit more convincing. When her calls became more and more insistent, he finally had to tell her he didn’t want to see her anymore. That whatever they had was over. Fortunately that was the last he heard of her. Until the recent encounter. And he hopes that will be the last he sees of her. But he doesn’t think it will. This meeting wasn’t an accident. He just hopes that whatever she’s up to, he’ll be able to counter it. He promised himself he wouldn’t let anyone or anything destroy his marriage again. It’s a promise he intends to keep.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan opens the door to a giant teddy bear and laughs. Cool Uncle Zafer has arrived. She just shakes her head because the man seems determined to spoil Ayla rotten.

“I hope you remember this when you have kids, Zafer. Because I’m going to return the favor,” Reyhan says with a threat, letting the man inside.

“Not happening, Yenge,” he laughs, the affectionate term flowing easily from his lips. “You know I’m not the marrying kind. Now where’s my favorite girl in the whole world.”

In true Ayla fashion, she lets out a squeal when she sees the giant bear and runs to Zafer. Zafer bends down and scoops her up into his arms. She lets out another peal of laughter when he tosses her in the air.

“Zafer,” Reyhan sighs in exasperation. But she isn’t seriously upset. She knows Zafer is always careful with her. She still gets nervous though.

“Your anne is getting worried,” he says in a stage whisper to Ayla. “We’ll wait until she’s not around.”

Ayla just giggles, causing Reyhan to shake her head again.

“Emir is in his study,” Reyhan tells him. “You can go on back. I’ll bring tea.”

With one last wink, he sets Ayla down and lets her go to her new toy, leaving Reyhan to wonder where in the world they’re going to put the giant thing.

“Let’s find a place for him in your room,” Reyhan says, taking Ayla with one hand and the bear in the other. “Then we’ll pour some tea for your baba and Uncle Zafer.”

Ayla ends up staying in her room for a tea party with her new teddy bear friend. So by the time Reyhan helps her get set up and settled, the guys are done with their work meeting. When she finally gets in there with tea, Zafer is on his way out.

“Leaving already?” Reyhan asks him, disappointed she didn’t get the chance to speak with him. When she first married Emir, she never had much opportunity to get to know Zafer. But in the time they’ve been in Ankara, his visits have given them the time to get much closer. She can see why he’s Emir’s best friend. The two are actually more like brothers. They’re lucky to have Zafer in their lives.

“I’ll be back later. Emir invited me for dinner, if that’s alright.”

“Of course it is. You’re always welcome,” Reyhan tells him. “You even have a standing invitation to stay here with us when you’re in town. I don’t know why you always get a hotel.”

Zafer just smiles at them. He doesn’t think they realize how they’ve automatically wrapped themselves around each other.

“You two are still newlyweds.” He grins before jokingly saying, “I’m afraid all that happiness is going to rub off on me.”

“Love is not a disease, my friend,” Emir laughs, but then turns a tender gaze towards Reyhan. “You don’t know what you’re missing.”

When he sees his friends this happy, he’s almost convinced that Emir is right. But Zafer didn’t have the happiest of upbringings. His father drove his mother to an early grave and then proceeded to change wives the way most people change socks. So no. Things like love, marriage, and happiness are not in his future. And definitely not children.

“I’ll take your word for it,” Zafer says, pasting on a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “But I will say that if there’s anyone who could make me believe in love, it’s you two.”

He just shakes his head when they give each other a sappy look. They’re so gone for each other. All joking aside, it’s actually beautiful to see.

On his way out the door, Emir stops him to give him the donations he agreed to take to Defne for them. Her office is on the way to where he’s going, so dropping by there won’t be a problem. When Reyhan realizes where he’s going, she also has a package for Defne.

“She said she wasn’t feeling good earlier,” she explains. “I told her I would send her some tea to settle her stomach. I included the brewing instructions. Tell her to get to a doctor if she doesn’t feel better. She might have a stomach bug or something.”

Zafer just nods. He knows what’s wrong with Defne, but clearly she hasn’t shared with Reyhan yet, so it’s not his place to say anything. So he says nothing.

On the way to Defne, he makes one more stop at a small market. He asks the woman behind the counter what she’d recommend for what he assumes is morning sickness and ends up with a few more things that should help Defne feel better. Until she decides to share her news with her friends, he’s all she has. Defne is a good girl and he really liked her when he met her. He just doesn’t want her to be alone in this right now.

Zafer gets to her office and is about to knock when he hears raised voices from inside. He doesn’t want to interrupt, so he decides to take a seat and wait. And unfortunately can’t help but overhear what’s going on inside.

_“I will not allow this, Defne! You will marry Fatih!”_

Zafer assumes it’s her father. Or some older man who feels responsible for her.

_“Baba, enough with Fatih. I already told you. I’m not marrying him. And you only love him because he drives that nice car. But he isn’t a nice man.”_

_“Kızım, you have to marry. You can’t have this baby alone.”_

_“I can and I will! My baby and I will be fine on our own. But I’m hoping we won’t be alone. We have you, Baba. Don’t we?”_

_“Defne, enough! I’ve indulged this foolishness for far too long. You have 24 hours to produce a husband. I’ve already spoken with your boss here. Do you really think they’ll let an unmarried pregnant woman work at a place like this? A place that represents families?”_

Zafer stands up when he hears the shocked gasp from Defne. This conversation has gone from bad to worse and she’s not okay anymore.

_“Baba, what did you do?”_

_“I did what I had to do. You won’t keep this job without a husband. And without this job, you won’t be able to raise that baby. I’ve said all I’ve had to say. Fatih made an appointment at the Wedding Hall in the morning. I suggest you be there.”_

The door swings open and Zafer has to jump out of the way to avoid the man storming out. The man doesn’t even notice him in his anger. Zafer goes inside to make sure Defne is okay.

“Defne?”

She jumps when she hears his voice. She tries to wipe away her tears, but he sees them anyway.

“I guess you heard all of that,” she sighs. She lifts her hand to her forehead and closes her eyes. “This is a nightmare, Zafer. I don’t even know what’s happening right now.”

Zafer grabs her arm and leads her to the couch so that she can sit. Then he gets her a cup of water and places it in her hands.

“Drink. Breathe. Relax. We’ll think of something,” he promises her. “It’s going to be alright.”

“Zafer, my father just cost me my job,” she says. “I love working here, but there’s no way I’m going to marry Fatih. But without a job, how will I be able to support myself? My father is going to make me marry Fatih anyway.”

“Marriage can’t be your only option,” Zafer says. “How about another job?”

“Who would hire a woman about to give birth in a couple of months?” she groans. But her eyes perk up when she gets an idea. “The lottery?”

“I think your odds of being hit by a car while being struck by lightning are better. Sorry.”

“I could run away,” she says, making him laugh.

“You’re not twelve years old,” he points out needlessly.

“Poison Fatih on our wedding night?”

“Okay, how about you stop thinking for a minute. Because you’re starting to scare me.”

He throws his arm over her and she rests her head on his shoulder.

“What am I going to do?” she asks hopelessly. “I’m going to have to do what my father wants.”

Just then, her office opens again and Defne’s boss walks in, an empty box in his arms.

“Ilhan bey?” she asks, her voice cracking in fear. “What’s this?”

“I’m sorry Defne. But your father just told me what’s going on with you. You can’t work here in your current … situation.” He casts a nervous glance at her stomach.

“Don’t do this,” she pleads with him. “Please. At least give me some time. I’m not showing yet. No one even knows I’m pregnant.”

“I’m sorry,” her boss says. “You can’t work here like this if you have no husband.”

“What if she did have a husband?” Zafer asks, rising to stand next to Defne. He can’t believe what he’s doing. But he keeps on before he loses his nerve. “What if she gets married. Today.”

“Zafer. I already told you I’m not marrying Fatih,” Defne reminds him.

“Not Faith,” Zafer corrects her. “Me.”


	16. Chapter 16

It’s all a little confusing. A little bit amusing. But it really just mostly leaves Emir scratching his head. How they got to where they are now is the story they’re waiting on Defne and Zafer to tell. It had started a few hours ago when Zafer had called.

_“Hey man, you busy? I need a huge favor,”_ was all Zafer had said. So imagine Emir’s surprise to arrive at the location Zafer had sent to discover he and Reyhan were to be witnesses.

Wedding witnesses.

His friend, the man who held onto his bachelor status even more firmly than Emir did, was getting married. And Emir could hardly believe even though he was seeing it with his own eyes.

“Did you know about this before?” Reyhan whispers to him. “I didn’t even know Defne and Zafer knew each other this well.”

“You know what I know,” Emir says with a shrug. “You were there when I got his call. But Zafer promised to explain it all as soon as everyone left. That’s happening now.”

He nods towards the front door where Defne and Zafer were escorting the last of the guests out. From what Emir gathered, the oldest man is Defne’s father. He came with another man who spent the entire wedding glaring at Zafer. Someone named Fatih. Emir isn’t sure who he is. Defne’s boss was also a guest. But they’re all leaving now. So whatever explanation Zafer has, those people apparently don’t need to hear.

The only people still in attendance, aside from Emir and Reyhan, are sitting on the couch opposite them holding a sleeping Ayla. The older couple, Emine and Murat Yilmaz, are the Ankara clients Emir and Zafer have been working with this whole time. Emir isn’t sure why they were even invited in the first place, but hopefully he’s about to find out. Not that they aren’t nice people. They came and treated everyone like family. Ayla especially enjoyed the attention from the older couple, as evidenced by her sleeping comfortably in Emine hanım’s arms.

Emir gives Reyhan a look and nods in the direction of Ayla. She gets his silent message.

“Would you like us to take her?” Reyhan asks the woman. “I’m sure Defne has a place we can lay her until we leave.”

“No, no, no, Canım. She’s more than fine,” Emine hanım says with a gentle smile. “We never had any girls, and our sons live so far away with our grandchildren. Little Miss Ayla has been a treat.”

“She’s fine,” Murat bey echoes, taking Ayla’s hand and pressing a little kiss there. “She’s such a sweet child. Defne tells us she helped place her with you two? I remember you talking about her a few weeks ago when your wife was still in the hospital. I’m so glad to see the situation worked out for everyone. She’s a lucky little girl.”

“We’re the lucky ones,” Emir smiles, looking at Reyhan again.

In the end, Zafer and Emir end up taking Ayla to the spare bedroom so she can sleep uninterrupted while Defne and Reyhan go to the kitchen to make coffee. Emir can’t help but pepper his friend with questions.

“You know I’m going to ask … what is all of this, Zafer? I mean, come on. Dude, we asked you to take the girl some tea. Not marry her!”

Zafer just laughs, patting Emir on the shoulder.

“I promise you’ll understand in a minute,” Zafer assures him. “You will probably understand more than anyone why we did this.”

At Emir’s confused look, Zafer just leads him back to the living room with the others. It’s time for the long awaited conversation.

“First of all, let me just thank everyone here for what they did for us today,” Zafer starts. “I know this was a surprise, to say the least.”

“We had to move quickly,” Defne adds. “And I’m just grateful Zafer has good enough friends to do this for us, no questions asked. So again, thank you. Thank you all so much.”

“But, you all deserve to know the truth of what’s happening here.” Zafer takes over the story again and explains everything to them.

“Defne’s ex left her when he found out she was pregnant. Her father has been pressuring her to marry the guy anyway. He even went so far as to tell her boss about her situation and her job was on the line. She was given the choice today to either marry the ex or lose her job and end up having to marry the ex anyway.”

“Zafer happened to be there at my office and overheard the whole situation. He gave me another option. He offered to marry me.” Defne gives Zafer a shy smile before continuing. “But even still, my dad didn’t make it easy. He still wanted the tradition. Zafer had to come with his elders to ask for my hand before he would agree to the marriage. Even though he was the one insisting. Stubborn man.”

At Defne’s grumbling words, Zafer reaches over and gives her hand a gentle squeeze, causing Emir to raise his eyebrows in surprise at the tender move.

“Emir, you know how my father is,” Zafer says. “He’s probably somewhere in South America with wife number four. Or is it five? I’ve lost count. So that’s how Murat bey came into the game. I had actually called him to postpone our meeting until later and when I told him why, he graciously offered to do this for us.”

“We were more than happy to do this, Oğlum,” Emine hanım says. “Like I said, our children are so far from us. This has been a pleasure for us to take on a new son and his bride.”

When Emine hanım gets up to hug the new couple, Reyhan gets up to clear away the coffee. She manages to keep her hands from shaking until she’s safely in the kitchen and away from the others. But once she’s alone, the sadness hits her. Such a weird situation, but everyone else seems to be happy enough, if the cheerful chatter that continues in the other room is any indication. Reyhan doesn’t want to bring anyone down with her mood.

“Reyhan?”

She jumps when she hears Emir’s voice behind her.

“Are you okay?”

She should have known she couldn’t get anything past him.

“Can we go?” she asks in a shaky voice. “I’m getting pretty tired.”

Her gently grabs her shoulder and turns her to face him, needing to see her eyes. He can hear that she’s upset, not tired. And needs to know why.

“What happened to you out there?”

She just sighs and falls into his arms, letting her arms go around his waist.

“Tell me,” he begs her. “You’re starting to scare me.”

“Emine hanım,” is all Reyhan says.

Emir tenses, preparing to go defend Reyhan if the woman offended her in any way.

“What did she say?” he asks coldly, not willing to let anyone, even a client, get away with mistreating his wife.

It actually makes her feel better to realize what he’s willing to give up for her. She rubs his back to calm him down, her own soul calmer now because of his care for her.

“It’s not what you think,” she says, pulling away from him so that she can see him. “Emine hanım is amazing. Ayla has really taken to her. What they did for Zafer and Defne today was amazing. That fact that she would do that … that she could go to Defne and embrace this woman she’s barely known a day and treat her like a beloved bride …”

Reyhan lets out a deep, sad sigh.

“Emir, do you know what your mother said to me on our wedding day?”

And now he understands why she’s so upset. He closes his eyes to hide the shame and anger she would see there.

“Reyhan, I …”

Reyhan continues as if Emir didn’t even say anything at all.

“She said _‘I warned you. You’re responsible for what happens now. Welcome to hell.’_ Then she looked at me with this smile.” Her eyes take on this far away, distant look as she remembers the near past. “It was the smile that really scared me. That smile gave me chills.”

Silence from Emir. He doesn’t know what to say to make this better for her.

“She kept her promise, too,” Reyhan nods. “She made sure my every day in that house was a nightmare. She said that a village girl like me didn’t deserve to be her son’s wife or the daughter in law of the mansion. She made sure I knew I didn't belong. That I knew I wasn’t welcome or wanted, especially by you. She made sure you wouldn’t get close to me. I had to nearly die to escape. For you to really see me.”

He’s looking down now, shoulders sagging at the heavy truths she’s laying on him. This isn’t what she wanted. In the end, she has what she’s always wanted. And that’s thanks to this man standing before her now. She puts her hand on his cheek and brings his eyes to hers.

“But you know what?” she asks him. “You did see me, despite all that she did. And the fact that you did, makes what we have here that much more special.”

She adds her other hand to his other cheek and brings his face to hers for a sweet kiss.

“I see the way you love me, Emir. And it makes me love you even more than I thought I already did. More than I thought possible.”

A mix of emotions fly across his face, but he lands on happy. She said she loves him. He has the biggest smile on his face when he wraps his arms around her, lifts her up and spins her until she’s giggling and almost dizzy. But when he sets her down, he turns serious.

“Reyhan, I’m not going to let my mother hurt you anymore,” he promises. “I’m not going to let anyone hurt you anymore. You and Ayla are my life now. You two are my family. You’re everything to me. And if my mother is too blind to see that, then it’s her loss.”

He gives her one more hug.

“Let’s get you home.”

She happily agrees.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

She watches as they come home. She’s still confused at what Emir sees in a girl like this. This little nobody seems to have captured his heart in a way she never realized was possible. Not too long ago, Melisa had dreamed of becoming Emir’s wife. She was raised to be his wife. Their families had encouraged the pairing from the time they were in high school. And for a while, Emir had cooperated. He was the good and obedient son and played the perfect boyfriend. But as time passed, he grew more and more distant. Nothing she did could bring him back. Until the day she had lost him for good. She knew he only needed time. They were both so young and he felt he had a life to live. So Melisa had let him live that life. But enough is enough. It’s time he takes his rightful place as her husband. Her mission won’t be as easy as she thought it would be. But in the end, she will win. She refuses to believe otherwise. Emir will be hers again. But first to get rid of this distraction. She needs to find a way to send this girl scurrying back to whatever little hick village she came from.

_“Show her how out of place she is. Show her she has no business being with a man like Emir,”_ Cavidan hanim had advised. _“Do whatever you have to do to get her away from my son!”_

Melisa would almost feel bad for Reyhan if she weren’t the enemy. But this is war. And there’s no time for sympathy. Reyhan has no idea who she’s up against.

When Emir and Reyhan go into the house, Melisa drives away. She’ll let them have tonight. Because tomorrow, the real fun will start.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan gets ready for bed while Emir puts Ayla down for the night. She had so much fun at the wedding that she hasn’t woken up since earlier. She doesn’t even budge when Emir changes her into her pajamas.

On his way to the room, he stops by the kitchen for some water, still semi processing the crazy evening they just had. He just can’t believe the turn of events. Zafer married. To a pregnant woman he barely knows. After hearing the explanation of everything, Emir can understand how Zafer would have made such a decision. And can Emir really judge anyone else’s reasons for getting married? His own marriage didn’t have such a traditional start either. But it’s turned out to be the best thing he’s ever done. Maybe it will be the same for Zafer. It would be nice if he fell for Defne the way Emir has fallen for Reyhan. It would be nice for his friend to know the same peace and happiness Reyhan has brought into his life.

The bedroom door opens and he turns to see Reyhan walking towards him, taking his breath away like she usually does. Even scrubbed clean and wearing flannel pajamas and fuzzy slippers like she is now. He can’t believe he got so lucky. He can’t believe how empty his life would be right now if she hadn’t come into it.

“Tonight was fun,” he says to her as she comes to get water. He gets another glass down from the cabinet for her. “Strange, but fun.”

She smiles at that.

“It’s not every day we’re invited to a surprise wedding,” she laughs. “I really didn’t see that coming. Did you?”

“Never in a million years. I hope Zafer knows what he’s doing. I hope they both do. This is something that will change both of their lives forever. Even if they only did it because of her father, a marriage is something that changes things between people. We know that better than anyone,” he points out. “We may have gotten married because of my father, but our hearts didn’t get that memo.”

Another smile from her.

“Do you really think they could fall for each other?” she asks wistfully. “They do make a good couple if you think about it. Did you see when they danced together? There were sparks.”

“You are so cute,” he tells her, pulling her into his arms and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. He starts to sway with her to a tune he hears in his head. “Speaking of dancing, we didn’t do nearly enough at the wedding. I love having you in my arms like this.”

She just sighs and closes her eyes, resting her head on his chest. She loves it as much as he does. 

She doesn’t know how long they dance, but when he stops and looks down at her, she feels almost like she’s in a trance. When he kisses her, it feels like a dream she doesn’t want to end. Her knees buckle and he tightens his grasp around her to keep her on her feet, gently kissing her cheeks while she tries to catch her breath.

“Don’t stop,” she pleads, trying to pull him closer. “Don’t let me go.”

He stops breathing for a second, not believing what he’s hearing. Hoping she’s saying what he thinks she’s saying. But the heat blazing in her eyes leaves no doubt. She wants him as much as he wants her.

“I won’t ever let you go,” he promises, bending to lift her in his arms. He kisses her again as he carries her into the room to prove he’s a man of his word.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

He kisses her bare shoulder the next morning, smiling when she makes a cute little grumbling noise and swatting him away.

“Sleep,” she mutters. “I need sleep.”

He smiles again. He knows exactly why she’s so tired. They didn’t get a lot of sleep the night before.

He, on the other hand, feels refreshed and energized. He’s tempted to pull her to him again, but he decides to show her some mercy and leave her alone. Giving her shoulder one last kiss, he gets out of the bed and ambles to the bathroom for a shower. As the warm water pours over his body, he thinks back to the night before. Having her in his arms felt right. They fit together perfectly, almost as if they were made for each other.

He’s not sure what changed with her. But he’s grateful for whatever it was that convinced her of his love for her and made her decide to be so open with him. To be _with_ him. The first time they were together - on their wedding night - it was strange and awkward, but beautiful in its own way. Despite his reputation, Emir was never one to be random and indiscriminate with his choice of bed partners. So his wedding night had meant something to him. But not more than his pride, unfortunately. His pride cost him months of happiness with this woman. Months of mornings just like this of waking up in each other’s arms. Months of soul stealing kisses and tangled limbs that entwine their bodies as their souls are doing the same. A mistake he’ll never make again. Just like he promised her last night … he’s never letting her go. Not anymore.

He finishes up in the bathroom and quietly gets dressed, smiling when she doesn’t even budge. She looks like an angel. He almost gives into the temptation to just crawl back in the bed with her when the doorbell rings. He doesn’t want to risk her waking, so he goes to quickly answer it. And instantly wishes he hadn’t.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, scowling at the visitor. He takes a quick peek over his shoulder to make sure Reyhan isn’t there and steps out on the porch, pulling the door closed behind him.

“You aren’t going to invite me inside?” Melisa pouts. “And here I thought we were old friends.”

“We’re nothing, Melisa. Now what do you want?” he asks again. “What are you doing here? And most importantly, how do you keep finding me?”

Emir has his suspicions that his mother is somehow behind all of this. But he’s keeping that theory to himself for now. The thing he needs to worry about now is getting Melisa out of here before Reyhan sees her. She doesn’t need to deal with any more of his mother’s games. She’s happy here in Ankara. Safe. Emir won’t let Melisa take that happiness away from Reyhan.

“We need to talk. I have something important to tell you,” Melisa says. “And I’d rather not do it out here on the porch.”

Emir’s scowl returns and then he lets out a big sigh. He’s not getting rid of her any other way.

“Fine,” he spits out. “But not here. Meet me where we met earlier, at the food court at the mall. I’ll be there in 2 hours. Now go. And don’t come back to my home, Melisa. I mean it. I don’t want to see you here again.”

She gives him a wink before turning and walking away. He stands there until she gets into her car and disappears down the street.

“That girl is gonna be trouble,” he tells himself, wondering what he’s done to deserve her level of crazy in his life again. He’s gotten rid of her once, but clearly it didn’t stick. This time, he will have to make sure she stays gone.


	17. Chapter 17

Reyhan never gets tired of listening to Ayla’s laughter. The child is so happy and it normally gives her a sense of pride that she’s the source of that happiness. Usually. This time she can’t take the credit. This time, Emine hanım, one of Ayla’s new favorite people after meeting at the wedding yesterday, has come to visit and Ayla can’t get enough of the older woman currently making the stuffed animals make crazy noises.

“You know, the more you do that, the more she’s going to ask you to do it,” Reyhan says to the woman with a smile. “You’re going to be making those animals talk all day if she has her way.”

“What the princess wants, the princess shall have,” Emine says, tapping Ayla on the nose.

“Yes, but it’s time for the princess to take a nap,” Reyhan says, giving Ayla an _‘I mean business’_ look. Ayla pouts for a minute, but she finally obeys and heads to her room after giving both Emine and Reyhan hugs. The nanny is waiting at the door for her.

The nanny was a bit of an argument between Reyhan and Emir. She didn’t want one. Didn’t think they needed one. But Emir insisted. The nanny is there during the day to keep Reyhan from getting over tired. Although she’s gotten better and is well enough to be out of the hospital, she still has weekly doctor’s visits and therapy. And two things the doctor emphasizes is a lot of rest and no stress. Ayla can be a handful at times and Reyhan has to admit that the nanny has been a big help.

“So, how have you been, canım?” Emine asks Reyhan, taking a sip of the coffee Reyhan has made. “My husband tells me you’ve been in the hospital?”

“Much better, thanks. The hospital here is terrific and treated me wonderfully. This whole city is wonderful. I love it here.”

“You didn’t love Istanbul?” Emine is curious.

“I wasn’t there long,” is all Reyhan says, trying to ignore the clench in her stomach thinking of all the pain she left behind in Istanbul. That place was torture for her. “I’m originally from Erzurum and moved to Istanbul when Emir and I married.”

“That’s right! You two are newlyweds too. I remember hearing how some woman finally tamed Cavidan Tarhun’s wild son. I guess you’re that woman,” Emine says, giving Reyhan an assessing look. “You’re not what I would have imagined, but you’re clearly what he needed. I’m going to be honest. Your husband had quite a reputation. I was hesitant for my husband to work with him. But my husband is very pleased with the work Emir is doing.”

“Thank you,” Reyhan says, kind of coldly. A bit offended that the woman had her doubts about Emir. “My husband is a hard worker and is very successful at what he does. Your husband is the lucky one.”

Emine just laughs, patting Reyhan on the lap.

“Well said, kızım,” she says. “You just tactfully put me in my place. You two are very protective of each other. It’s a beautiful thing to see. He takes care of you well. You take care of each other well. You’re a very good match. So don’t get me wrong when I say this, but I’m surprised Cavidan would have allowed her son to marry someone like you. I know the kinds of girls she was looking at to be her daughter in law. You are nothing like any of them. Be proud of that, by the way. Nothing but useless bunches of fluff. It’s no wonder Emir was never interested in any of them.”

“Cavidan hanım and I are … very slowly getting used to each other,” Reyhan admits, trying to make things seem better than they were. “But it’s probably for the best that I’m here in Ankara while I finish my recovery. Cavidan hanım strongly objected to the marriage and did not love being overruled by my uncle. He’s the one who wanted me to marry Emir. ”

“Well, Emir doesn’t seem to mind either,” Emine says with a wink. “And at the end of the day, that’s all that matters. He looks at you as if you’re the best thing that ever happened to him.”

Reyhan smiles. She likes this woman. Even if only for how well she treats Ayla. And for what she and her husband did for Zafer and Defne the night before. They went above and beyond.

“By the way, thanks again for the wedding last night,” Reyhan says. “That whole thing took us completely by surprise.”

“Zafer and Defne seem like good kids. It was our pleasure,” Emine assures her. “Like I said before, our sons are older and live so far away. We miss having young people around. I feel like we have a whole new set of children. And now, grandchildren, with Ayla and Defne’s little one on the way.”

Reyhan’s eyes widen at that. She never thought too much about Ayla having grandparents. Her uncle for sure will love the little girl. But she can’t see Cavidan taking to the child anymore than she took to Reyhan.

“Both my parents are gone,” she says sadly. “Emir’s father will be so excited to meet Ayla. Cavidan hanım, on the other hand … might take a little while to warm up to her.”

More likely she will hate the child just because she calls Reyhan _anne_. Or because they don’t know her background. Or because she isn’t Emir’s natural child. So many reasons for her to be rejected. But Reyhan won’t say that out loud. Her problems with Cavidan hanım are hers alone. And certainly not anything she should be sharing with a stranger.

“Listen, kızım,” Emine says, taking Reyhan’s hand. “We used to live in Istanbul, so I know your mother in law. I have known her for quite a few years. And I can only imagine what she did to put that tortured look on your face whenever you talk about her. She clearly hasn’t been the mother you deserve, especially since you don’t have one of your own anymore.”

“It’s fine,” Reyhan tries to tell her. But her hand is shaking when she lifts it to wipe away one lone tear that has fallen. “That relationship is just going to take a bit more work.”

“It’s not fine, kızım,” Emine interrupts her. “You deserve better. And you need to watch your back. Cavidan is a dangerous woman. I know all about the tricks and games she likes to play. You take care of this beautiful family. Because she will try to take it away from you. Don’t let her.”

Reyhan wonders what story Emine hanım has to tell. Because she seems to have first hand experience with Cavidan.

“A story for another time,” Emine says after noticing Reyhan’s curious glances. “How about a bit more coffee? We can chat more.”

Reyhan goes to get the coffee, but can’t stop wondering how fate brought this woman into her life. Someone who actually understands what she’s been through with Cavidan. Reyhan was unsure what life away from Istanbul would be like. But some of the best things in her life have happened to her in Ankara. For the first time in a long time, she’s happy. For the first time in a long time, she doesn’t feel as if she’s in this world alone. She has Emir and Ayla. She has Zafer and Defne. And now she has this dear woman here. She’s building a world full of friends and family who will be there for her when she needs them. It’s her own little village. Her own little Erzurum. She’s starting to feel like she’s finally found a home in this place and with these people.

Her phone gives a little _ding_ sound, indicating a message has come in. It’s probably Emir. He left a few hours before for a meeting. He usually checks on her if he knows he’ll be late. With a smile, she picks up her phone …. and almost instantly her smile falters. It’s not a message from Emir. But it is a picture of him. A picture of him and that woman from the other day.

Just like that, a dark cloud settles over her new, beautiful life. Emir had lied to her. And she feels like her whole world is falling apart.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Emir sits and impatiently watches Melisa pick at a salad. The woman insisted on eating before she would say anything and Emir has no choice but to wait on her. But only for another ten minutes. She won’t get any more of his time after that. All he wants is for her to stay away from him anyway. He’d rather get confirmation that she’s working with his mother, but that isn’t necessary. Keeping peace in his household is the most important thing. And to do that, he’s going to have to keep this woman away from his family.

“Alright, Melisa. Time’s up,” Emir says sharply. “What is so important that you had to come and talk to me about?”

“I missed you,” she says. “That’s all. We had something special. We can have that again.”

“No, Melisa! Just stop. I told you years ago that I didn’t want anything to do with you. Why are you trying to bring all this back up now? I’m happily married and have no intentions on stressing my wife with this nonsense. So I’m going to say this here and now and you need to listen,” he demands. “This isn’t going to happen. It was never going to happen back then and it’s never going to happen now. I don’t know what my mother told you. And frankly, I don’t care what she told you. But I love my wife. I’m happy with my life. I won’t allow you to mess it up. I will not allow you to cause one tear to fall from my wife’s eyes. If you hurt her, I will make you regret ever stepping foot in this town, do you understand?”

“But Emir …”

“Melisa,” he growls. “Don’t play with me. Do. You. Understand?”

She lifts teary eyes to him. But when they are met with his icy glare, she drops her own glance into her lap.

“I understand,” she says quietly.

Satisfied with her answer, he nods and rises from his seat.

“Don’t let me see you again,” he warns her. “Or you will be sorry.”

She keeps the meek look on her face until he’s out of sight. Then she rolls her eyes as she lets out a little chuckle.

“No, Emir. You are the one who will be sorry,” she mutters to herself. “It didn’t have to be like this. But I came here for you. I’m not leaving until I have you.”

A young man comes to her table and sits in Emir’s vacated seat.

“Did you do what I instructed?” she asks him. At his nod, she slides an envelope of money across the table.

“I sent the picture, just like you asked. And I waited until I saw a _Read_ notification. She received the message,” he explains.

She nods and sends him away. Everything is going as planned. Everything is working out perfectly. An evil grin spreads across her face.

“This is just the beginning, Emir. Let’s see how long you remain happily married. We’ll see who you come running to when that wife leaves you.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It’s a few hours before Emir can head home. He told Reyhan he had to work and he wasn’t lying about that. He really does have a lot of work to do, especially with Zafer gone for the next two weeks. He isn’t sure why a fake marriage necessitated a real honeymoon, but Zafer actually had seemed excited. In fact, Emir is starting to suspect that this marriage is less fake than Zafer and Defne want to admit. And who knows, maybe it won’t be such a bad thing for either of them. If it makes Zafer happy, then Emir can’t object too much.

He’s just about to leave his meeting with Murat bey when the man’s wife walks into the office. He’s never seen her look anything other than friendly, so he’s taken aback by the fire blazing in her eyes. And that fiery gaze in his direction.

“Emir bey. Just the man I was looking for,” she says, her cold tone making him shiver.

“Emine hanım? Is everything alright with you?”

“Emine, Love. Emir and I were just finishing our meeting,” Murat bey says, walking to stand next to his wife and giving her a kiss on her cheek. “Did you have a nice day with Reyhan? How is that precious little Ayla?”

“She really is precious,” Emine says, her ice melting a bit. “But she’s waiting on her baba. And her baba has apparently been busy.”

Emir is confused by the confrontational edge in her voice. Clearly something is wrong.

“Is there a problem, Emine hanım?” he asks her.

“I don’t know, Emir bey. Is there?”

So yes. A problem. But what? Unfortunately, Emine hanım doesn’t seem like she wants to tell him.

“Did something happen with Reyhan?” he asks, then immediately starts to worry. What’s going on with his wife? “Is she okay? Did something happen? Did she hurt herself?”

He fumbles with his phone with shaking hands and tries to dial Reyhan. But Emine puts a gentle hand on his, this time the look in her eyes more soothing.

“She’s not fine,” Emine admits. “But it’s nothing with her health. Sit down. Calm down before you fall down.”

He obeys and all but falls into a chair. He takes a few breaths to calm down.

“Okay, you said she isn’t okay. What happened?”

The disapproving look returns to Emine’s face. She gives him the once over before pulling out her own phone and shoving it in his face.

“She got this picture in a message earlier. Shook the poor girl to the core to see you sneaking around on her,” Emine accuses.

“What? No! This isn’t what it looks like,” Emir insists. “Who sent this to her?”

But he doesn’t even need to wonder. It’s a picture of his lunch with Melisa. She must have had someone there to take the picture and send it. It’s why she didn’t have anything to say after claiming she had something important to talk with him about. It was all a set up.

“This is a woman I’ve been trying to get out of my life for years,” Emir tells them. “She suddenly popped up a few days ago and I told her to leave. She showed up to the house this morning. I didn’t want Reyhan to have to deal with this because I think my mother is behind all of this. I just wanted to get rid of Melisa so that Reyhan wouldn’t have anything to worry about.”

“Well, now she’s worrying,” Emine snaps at him. But it doesn’t have quite the same sting anymore. Her apparent anger at him is dwindling. “And she’s hurt you lied to her and kept this from her.”

“Emine hanım, you don’t understand what it was like for Reyhan when she married me. My mother hated her. Still hates her. Moving us here to Ankara was the only thing I could think of to protect Reyhan from her. I just didn’t want my mother to intrude on our life here.”

“You can’t protect her with lies, oğlum,” Emine tells him gently. “Because now she’s hurting and it’s because of you. You’re all she has. That girl had no one and then your father brought her to live in a house where she still had no one.”

Emir can’t deny what she’s saying. Reyhan was so alone for so long. Nothing he can do now can make up for all she endured.

“Listen, I can see you two love each other,” Emine admits. “But she’s a good girl. And she needs someone who’s going to take care of her. She may not have had anyone before, but she has someone now. You hurt her, you deal with me. Do I make myself clear?”

Emir feels a mix of anger and gratitude. On the one hand, how dare this woman butt her nose into his life in this way and act like she can boss him around. But on the other hand, it fills his heart knowing someone cares this much about his wife.

“Reyhan is ours now. And you better treat our girl right.” She gives her husband a pointed glare, eyebrow lifted. It’s as if she’s daring him to contradict her on this.

“I’m going with the boss on this one,” Murat bey says with a laugh. “Looks like we have a daughter now. So you will be answering to us if you hurt her, Son.”

“Now go. Get out of here,” Emine says. “Reyhan is waiting on you.”

“Don’t forget flowers!” Murat calls behind Emir’s retreating back. He shakes his head in amusement at Emir’s rush to get out of there. “Is she really that upset? This poor guy is going to hurt himself before he gets home. He’s probably going to buy out the flower shop.”

“She’s fine,” Emine sighs. “She just needs to know he loves her. And he needs to know she has people who will stand behind her. We’ll make sure they’ll be okay. He’s not what I thought he’d be like. You know I was hesitant about you working with Cavidan Tarhun’s son. But he’s one of the good ones. And he loves Reyhan. They’re going to be fine.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

When Emir gets home, he walks into the sounds of Reyhan and Ayla getting dinner prepared. He feels even more guilty because he’s usually home at this time to help. He holds the huge bouquet of flowers in front of his face and clears his throat to get their attention.

“Baba is home!” Ayla screams, running towards him.

He deftly switches the flowers to just one hand and scoops her up with the other. She plants kisses on his cheeks that make him smile.

“Yes, your baba is home. Finally.”

Emir chances a look towards his obviously angry wife. He’s never heard quite that tone from her. Yikes. This might be harder than he thought.

“Look, Anne! He brought flowers,” Ayla helpfully points out. “Aren’t they pretty?”

“Not as pretty as my pretty girls,” Emir says, kissing Ayla on the cheek before putting her down. He walks over to Reyhan and hands her the flowers, kissing her on the cheek as well. She silently accepts both and Emir can see that she’s really _really_ mad. Yes. This really is going to be much harder than he thought.

Reyhan and Emir are both distracted and quiet during dinner, Ayla doing most of the talking. A little bored with them, the little girl goes to her room afterwards to play for a while.

“Can we talk?” he asks Reyhan once she’s finished with the dishes. He had just come back inside from taking out the trash. He’s been trying to judge her mood all throughout dinner. She didn’t throw away the flowers, so that’s a positive sign. She put them in a vase and has them displayed on a counter. He even noticed her touching the petals from time to time with a little smile. But she also hasn’t done more than glare at him since he’s gotten home. So he doesn’t know how to approach her. “Please. Let’s just sit and talk a minute.”

She lets out a heavy sigh and stops her walk towards the bedroom. She turns and joins him on the couch instead.

“I know I messed up,” he starts. “I’m sorry. I should have told you I was going to meet Melisa.”

“You said you were going to work,” she reminds him.

“I know.”

“You lied to me.”

The hurt in her voice makes his heart break.

“Yes,” he admits with a sigh. “But I just didn’t want you to worry. I wanted to make her leave town because I suspect she’s here because of my mother. And I didn’t want you to have to think about how my mother is still coming after us.”

“So it was better I found out this way?” she asks. “Some anonymous picture sent to me? No explanation from you? Emir, you can’t keep things from me. Especially not when it involves your mother.”

“I know. I just didn’t want you to have to worry. Reyhan, you’ve been so happy. We’ve been happy. We’ve been able to start a whole new life without any interference from my family. It’s been amazing. I didn’t want my mother to taint this for us.”

“But you can’t lie to me, Emir. You can’t hide stuff from me. Even if you think it’s for my own good. The only way we’re going to continue to survive whatever your mom throws at us is if we’re together in all things.”

“You’re right,” he shrugs. “I know that in my mind. But everything else in me wants to protect you first and foremost. You’ve already been hurt so much. I can’t stand to see you hurt anymore.”

He lifts his hands to cup her cheeks.

“I can’t stand to see tears fill these eyes anymore.”

She brings her hand up to cover his and leans into his touch. His words always go straight to her heart. She can never be mad at him for too long.

“Forgive me?”

His puppy dog eyes are the final straw. Poor guy looks truly sorry.

“Always,” she promises, finally giving him a smile.

She melts into him when he pulls her into his arms. He trembles a bit when he lets out a relieved sigh.

“Promise me I won’t ever lose you,” he demands. “Swear it. The very thought is my worst nightmare.”

“I’m with you,” she assures him. “No matter what happens, I’ll always be with you.”

She’s barely able to get the words out before his mouth is covering hers in a kiss that steals her breath. When he finally lets her up for air, his eyes are blazing with desire. He stands and then reaches out a hand to her to help her stand, pulling her towards the room. When she takes too long, he swoops her up into his arms.

“You know, Emir,” she says with a surprised laugh. “You can’t fix everything by just taking me to bed.”

He apparently takes that as a challenge.

“We’ll see about that,” he says, that wicked grin in place.

She just shakes her head and laughs. Something tells her he’s going to prove her very wrong.


	18. Chapter 18

They hear nothing from Melisa for months. She apparently took Emir’s threats seriously. Reyhan is back to being happy again and that’s all that matters to him. He has a happy wife. He has a happy kid. And he has a happy friend, despite how much that friend tries to deny it. Zafer has been in a complete state of bliss in his new role as husband and is completely over the moon about impending fatherhood. But he still won’t admit that Emir was right all along. Emir doesn’t even try to convince him anymore. He just watches in amusement as Zafer caters to Defne’s every whim.

Zafer has even begun to spend more and more time in Ankara. The original plan was for the two to go on leading their separate lives much the same way they’ve always lived, the only thing between them being a marriage on paper to help Defne keep her job. But Zafer started showing up every weekend. And also a couple times during the week when Defne would have a doctor’s appointment. Now, he’s located almost full time in Ankara. And the times he’s not here, Defne has started traveling to Istanbul with him. The two seem to be very happily living in both places together.

He even spends most time at Defne’s office when he doesn’t have direct work with Emir or Murat bey. Which is how they all came to meet up there on this day. They’re coming up on the end of the waiting period for Emir and Reyhan to be able to adopt Ayla. So this meeting with Defne has turned into an informal lunch for all four of them.

“Oof, that was a strong one,” Defne says, rubbing her hand on her stomach where the baby is kicking.

She takes Reyhan’s hand and places it in the spot so can feel it too.

At about seven months along, the perfect, round bump fascinates Reyhan. She’ll admit that she has a bit of baby fever. Ayla is still young, but not as young as a baby. She loves cuddles, but she also loves her newly emerging independence. Seeing Defne like this makes her yearn for a baby too.

“I bet you can’t wait to meet this little one,” Reyhan says wistfully, still rubbing Defne’s belly.

“I actually love being pregnant,” Defne gushes. “But yeah. I can’t wait to get this one in my arms. Zafer actually wants another one almost immediately. But we’ll see about that. I’ll probably need time.”

“Zafer?” Reyhan asks with some surprise, looking over at the man.

He looks slightly embarrassed.

“I want our kids to be close in age,” he shrugs. “That way they always have each other. Neither of us have siblings. We don’t want this baby to grow up alone like us. I was lucky to have Emir, though. He’s been my brother my whole life.”

Defne’s desk phone rings, so she leaves the others to talk while she goes to answer it. When she rejoins the group, her mood has definitely dropped.

“What is it? Are you okay?” Zafer asks, immediately tuning in to her emotions. He runs a hand up and down her back a few times when she gives him a sad nod.

“There may be a bit of a problem,” she says after looking at Emir and Reyhan. “As you know, before the adoption, we had to have a period of time where the adoption is “advertised” for lack of a better word. That waiting period is to give the birth parents one last chance to claim a child about to be adopted when there’s no official paperwork of the birth parents relinquishing their parental rights. As in the case with Ayla.”

“Okay,” Emir says, taking Reyhan’s hand as if to block the bad news from here. “So what is the problem here? You told us Ayla was abandoned as a baby. And that no one has heard from her birth mother since. That she’s been in and out of foster homes all her life.”

“Someone came forward,” Defne tells them. “A woman claiming to be her birth mother. She’s actually here now. With her lawyer.”

“A lawyer?” Reyhan asks with a gasp, turning to Emir. “Emir? What’s happening?”

“That’s what I’d like to know,” he says, not even trying to hide his suspicions. “This woman leaves her child for four years, we assume because she can’t afford the cost of caring for a child with a heart problem. But all of a sudden she shows up when someone wants to adopt her … with a lawyer?”

“I don’t know any other details. But they’re waiting for us in the conference room now,” Defne says, going over to her desk to gather the relevant files. When they’re all ready, they head down the hall to the other room. Zafer stays in the office to make a phone call to Emine and Murat. He has a feeling Reyhan is going to need them.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The minute they get to the conference room, Emir understands what’s going on.

“Melisa,” he grumbles, practically snarling at the woman when he sees her. “I should have known you’d be behind this.”

Reyhan stops when she notices the woman as well. She reaches for Emir’s hand and holds on to it tightly.

“Why is she here, Emir?” Reyhan whispers.

“Let’s take our seats and find out,” he says, pulling out a chair for her. When she sits, he takes the seat next to her. They’re sitting directly opposite from Melisa and her lawyer. He takes advantage of his position to glare at her. She unfortunately seems unphased. That begins to worry Emir.

“Thank you for coming forward,” Defne starts. “As you know, Emir and Reyhan Tarhun have petitioned to adopt Ayla. The adoption was well on the way to becoming final. Why come to us now?”

Melisa and her lawyer whisper to each other for a few seconds before the lawyer finally speaks.

“The why is irrelevant, Defne hanım. My client has come to claim her child and has done it within the time limit set by the law. This adoption must be stopped immediately.”

The lawyer slides an envelope across the table for Defne. She opens it and studies the contents carefully.

“That’s a DNA test showing my client to be the child’s mother,” the lawyer explains.

Reyhan makes an audible gasp, her skin turning pale. The hand that’s still holding onto Emir tightens.

“Impossible. I don’t believe it for one minute,” Emir shouts. “If you’re Ayla’s mother, then who is her father?”

The look on Melisa’s face turns smug. It’s the complete opposite of Defne’s pained expression as she turns to Emir.

“According to the test, Ayla’s father is … you.”

The room goes silent, everyone looking to Emir.

“That’s ridiculous,” he claims. “That doesn’t even make any sense. It’s not even possible.”

He almost laughs until he notices Reyhan has gotten very quiet. Very pale. It’s almost like she isn’t breathing.

“Reyhan? Come on. You don’t believe this, do you?” he asks her, fear growing in his heart. “She’s lying. This is all one big lie.”

He can see clear signs of panic in her eyes. Her breathing gets faster and faster and he’s afraid she’s about to pass out.

“Reyhan?” He calls her again. This time, concern in his voice. “Calm down, Sweetheart. Listen to me. Melisa is lying. This is all some crazy game she’s playing. Don’t believe a word of what she’s saying.”

“I … I … sick,” Reyhan mutters, unable to get a whole sentence out. Her face has gone from pale to green and she dashes out the door.

Emir is about to run after her when Defne stops him.

“I’ll go check on her,” she says, turning to glare at Melisa. “You handle this mess. We’ll talk again when I get back.”

Emir clenches his fists before turning his own angry glare towards Melisa.

“Why are you doing this? You know good and well there’s not even the slightest chance we have a child together. And certainly not Ayla. We haven’t even seen each other in over a decade,” he reminds her.

She just smiles and gives him a coy shrug.

“Your wife doesn’t seem to believe that version of events,” Melisa laughs. “I bet she’s off somewhere wondering why you lied to her. I bet she’s crying, thinking about all the times we could have been together and why you never told her.”

“Can’t tell her about something that never happened,” Emir says. “I’ll explain that to her and she’ll believe me. She trusts me.”

“You sure about that?” Melisa picks up the cursed paper that started this whole mess and waves it in front of his face. “Are you positive she will trust your word when this test says otherwise?”

Emir snatches the test from her and tears it in half. Melisa just shrugs again.

“You know as well as I do that piece of paper is worthless,” she admits. “But it’s served its purpose. This adoption is stopped for now. No child … no wife. No wife … and you’ll come crawling back to me. It’s only a matter of time.”

Melisa signals to her lawyer that it’s time to go. They leave calmly and peacefully, the complete opposite of the chaos they’ve left behind.

Emir is so angry he could almost kill Melisa. He can actually visualize himself wrapping his hands around her throat and squeezing until he’s left with just her lifeless body. He’s never felt this level of hate for anyone. It makes him feel physically ill. And he can completely understand what Reyhan felt earlier. All he can do is hope she’s okay now. And that somehow, she will believe him. Believe in their love. Because otherwise, Melisa wins.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Defne finds Reyhan in the women’s restroom being violently sick. She waits for her to finish before handing her a couple of wet paper towels. Reyhan gratefully takes them and pats at her face. The paper towels don’t help much so she goes to the sink to splash water on her face, rinsing her mouth out while she’s there.

“Reyhan,” Defne starts. “Don’t even worry about this woman. It’s obvious she’s just trying to cause trouble. We’ll get this worked out. We’ll expose her lies. Then you and Emir can adopt Ayla and be that happy family you were meant to be.”

“Why is this happening? Why does this _keep_ happening?” Reyhan asks, tears now streaming down her cheeks. “What have I done that I don’t deserve to be even a little happy for a little while? Am I asking for too much?”

“Don’t say that,” Defne says, taking the other woman’s face between her hands, making her look her in the eyes. “This is the life you and Emir deserve. This is the life the two of you have snatched from the jaws of pain and torment and built for yourselves. This will be fine. You have to believe that. Believe in Emir. He’ll work it out. We’ll all help. You’re not alone.”

“I’m just so tired, Defne,” Reyhan cries. “I’m tired of fighting so hard for something only for someone to come along and tell me I don’t deserve it. To try to take it away from me. I thought we had gotten away from that life in Istanbul. I thought we were going to be free to love and be happy.”

“Reyhan …”

But Reyhan stops her with a hand, holding it up in the air to interrupt Defne.

“I need some air,” she tells Defne, running out of the bathroom. Defne is far too pregnant to be able to keep up with her. So she lets her go. Maybe some time and space is all she needs.

Reyhan runs as far as she can before the crisp outside air fills her lungs. She takes deep breath after deep breath until she can feel herself calm down a little. Now that she can think clearly, she feels a little silly for falling for what’s now obviously a trick by Melisa. Defne is right. She needs to trust Emir. Trust their love. Everything will work out.

She turns to go back inside the building when her path is suddenly blocked. It’s Melisa. This woman can’t seem to stay out of her way.

“Reyhan, is it?” Melisa asks in a snooty, condescending tone. Reyhan knows this woman knows perfectly well what her name is. “Are you okay? The way you ran out of that room earlier had us all worried. Was it something I said?”

Reyhan’s hands ball into fists at her side. Probably for the first time in her life, she’s tempted to strike this woman. But she won’t. She won’t let Melisa get to her.

“Melisa, I’m not sure what you’re trying to do, but it won’t work,” Reyhan says, her voice surprisingly calm and steady. Inside, she’s a ball of pure rage. But she won’t let Melisa see that she’s shaken her. “Emir and I are a team. Coming up against us is a mistake. We will fight you and we will win because we have something you won’t ever be able to understand. We have love.”

“Aww, Canım. Has Emir not told you all the times he’s … _loved_ me as well? How do you think we made Ayla?” Melisa taunts.

“You and Emir haven’t seen each other in nearly ten years,” Reyhan spits back.

“Is that what he told you? And you believed him?” Melisa just laughs. “You’ve been in his life for five minutes. How do you know what we were doing five years ago?”

“I know my husband,” Reyhan counters. “I trust my husband. You are lying.”

“Maybe,” Melisa shrugs carelessly. “Maybe he’s only telling you what you want to hear. But can you risk that? Can you risk Emir losing out on the chance to raise his own child just because you don’t want to believe she’s his? If he stays with you, that’s what’s going to happen. But if you let him go, Ayla will live a happy life with her real parents. With her mother. Her father. Or are you too selfish to want that for that child?”

“Ayla is my daughter,” Reyhan insists. “She belongs with me and with Emir. You won’t take her away. You won’t break up my family.”

Reyhan sounds more confident than she is. She manages to wait until Melisa leaves before she has another breakdown. She feels her legs give out from under her and starts to fall towards the ground. Warm arms catch her. Surround her. She looks up into Emine’s eyes.

“My baby,” Emine says. “Don’t cry, child. We’ve got you. Your anne and baba have you now. Murat is bringing the car around now. We’re going to get you out of here.”

“Emir,” Reyhan cries.

“We’ll call him later. But we’re getting you out of here now,” Emine says, her voice hard and unyielding.

Reyhan has no choice but to go with her. And for that, she’s grateful. She doesn’t want to think about anything right now. So she doesn’t. She allows herself to get lost in mother’s embrace she hasn’t felt in a long time. She’ll let someone else fight her battles for a while.


	19. Chapter 19

Her eyes are still red rimmed when she gets home. But she’s no longer crying. It seems she ran out of tears about an hour ago. She can’t seem to keep her emotions in check no matter how hard she tries. But she knows she can’t put off this conversation she must have with Emir. No matter how much she thinks about it, she realizes Melisa is right. Emir shouldn’t miss out on his chance to raise his child because of Reyhan. He shouldn’t be more concerned with her feelings than with Ayla’s well being. She can’t be selfish here.

“Reyhan?”

He jumps up and runs to her when she walks through the door. She knows Emine Anne called him to let him know where she was, but it looks like he was still worried about her. She falls into his waiting arms. And almost instantly her heart feels whole again. She had missed him all day. She wraps her arms around his waist and holds him tight.

“Are you okay?” he asks her, gently stroking her hair.

“Better now that I’m with you,” she tells him. “Just hold me for a few more minutes.”

She doesn’t want to let go if this will be the last time.

“What happened? What did she say to you? I know she ran into you after she left.”

“Let’s sit. Let’s talk,” Reyahn says, taking him by the hand and pulling him to the sofa. “We have a lot to discuss.”

“Not really,” Emir says. “She’s lying. There’s nothing to discuss.”

“Is she, though?” Reyhan counters. “Can you say for a fact that she’s lying? Can you say for a fact that there’s no way this could be true?”

“What are you asking me, Reyhan?”

He sounds angry. She just closes her eyes and sighs. This is harder than she thought it would be.

“Emir, I know you love me. I know you worry about hurting me. But Ayla is the important one here. We have to do what’s best for her. If there’s a chance you could be her father, then …”

“Wait a minute,” he says, holding up a hand to stop her. “You actually believe that nonsense Melisa was spouting. You don’t believe me. You don’t trust me.”

“I do, Emir,” Reyhan cries. Apparently she had more tears because they’re back. “I trust you. I trust that you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. Even hide something like this.”

“You think I’m lying,” he says incredulously, rising from his seat to pace the floor. “You believe Melisa over me.”

“I want to do the right thing,” Reyhan says. “Can’t you see that? I’m breaking my own heart to try to do what’s best for you and Ayla. You two have to stay together. And if I have to get out of the way …”

“What are you even saying?” Emir yells. He looks towards Ayla’s door while trying to calm himself. The little girl doesn’t need to hear them fighting. “You would leave me over this? Because Melisa lied about me being with her?”

“You two were together. You told me,” Reyhan reminds him.

“Ten years ago, Reyhan. She left for America ten years ago. And I didn’t see her again after that. Not until she showed up here. Right from the beginning I told you about her. I didn’t hide anything from you. How can you think I’m lying to you now? How can you not trust me?”

“I’m sorry,” she tearfully apologizes. “I just don’t want you to regret being with me. If I cause you to lose Ayla, I would never forgive myself.”

“And you think I would be able to forgive you if you leave us?”

“She’ll have you. And she’ll have her … mother.” Reyhan stumbles over the word.

“You’re her mother, Reyhan,” Emir says quietly. He goes to kneel in front of her when her wrenching sobs start to break his heart. He’s still so very angry at her, but he can’t stand to see her cry like this. “Don’t cry, Baby.”

“Emir, I’m tired,” she sobs. “Losing you, losing Ayla … it would break me.”

“You’re not going to lose us,” he swears to her. “I’ll get whatever test you need to prove I’m telling you the truth.”

Somehow that hurts her even more. That no matter how much she swore not to hurt Emir, that’s exactly what she did. That no matter how much they swore to not let Melisa come between them, she has. And that despite all of that, Emir is still right here in front of her, holding her. Comforting her. When she can see the pain that she put in his eyes. Her crying calms down eventually and she just stares at him.

“You’re angry at me,” she guesses. She starts to feel more tears well up, but she forces them not to fall.

“It’s this whole situation, Reyhan,” he says with a frustrated sigh. “I hate what Melisa is doing and I hate not being able to figure out why. Or to stop her from hurting us. You, especially. But I’m mostly sad she was able to come between us like this. That you don’t trust me.”

“Emir …”

“No, I get it,” he interrupts her. “I do. I’ve hurt you so much in the past that I still need to earn your trust.”

“I didn’t do this to hurt you,” Reyhan explains, still admirably keeping the tears at bay. “I just wanted to make sure you didn’t suffer because of me. But you’re suffering anyway. And I’m the only one to blame. I’m so sorry.”

She gets up and goes into the bedroom, leaving him in the living room. Hoping he’ll come after her. But he doesn’t. Instead, she hears the front door open and then close and she knows he’s gone. Too late Reyhan realizes Melisa got exactly what she wanted.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Emir waits until he hopes she’s asleep before coming home. But he’s surprised to see the light on in the bedroom. She isn’t in the bed, though. She’s fallen asleep in the chair by the window. Probably looking for him all night. He feels guilty for leaving her to worry. He’s not going to lie. He was angry and hurt. But he just needed some time to fix his bruised ego. Too many times before, his pride has caused more problems than necessary. He refused to let that happen this time. So he went out. He cooled down. And suddenly her point of view isn’t as incomprehensible as he originally thought. He can see where she’s coming from. He understands the pain he’s put her through in the past. He understands her insecurities. He’s just going to have to work harder in the future to let her know that she’s the only one he wants to be with.

He walks quietly into the room and walks over to her, his heart aching at the dried tears on her cheeks.

“Reyhan,” he whispers to her, sweeping a lock of hair out of her face. “Wake up. Let’s get you in the bed.”

“I’m not asleep,” she mutters, sleepily curling towards him.

All he can do is smile at how cute she is.

“I can’t sleep without you,” she adds, still half asleep. “We have to make up.”

That makes him laugh.

“You are asleep, Baby.”

“I’m up. See?” She blinks open her eyes and lets out a huge yawn. “Don’t be mad at me anymore, okay? I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” he tells her, nuzzling her nose with his own. “We played right into Melisa’s hands and I let my pride get the better of me. Again.”

“I’m still sorry,” she says, stroking his cheek with her hand. “I even got you flowers, just like you got me flowers the other day to make up.”

“Oh yeah? I thought it was the guy who has to buy the flowers,” he chuckles.

“Not those kinds of flowers.”

Her hands go to the tie of her robe and loosens the knot. It opens to reveal a sight that leaves Emir gasping for air. He suddenly can’t take his eyes off of her. True to her word, there are flowers. Strategically placed flower appliques sewn carefully on to the sheerest nightgown he’s ever seen. But they are flowers, without a doubt. And they’re covering just enough for him to want them gone. Now.

“Do you forgive me?” she asks.

He shakes his head and blinks a few times to come to his senses before looking up at her face with a huge smile.

“For things you haven’t even done yet,” he says with an enthusiastic nod as he drags her to the bed.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

They take Ayla for a doctor’s appointment the next day. She’s healed well over the past couple of months but the doctor still wants them to be careful. Plus this gives them the chance to ask the doctor about a paternity test. Reyhan and Emir worked through the issues between them the night before. But they decided it would be best to have the evidence in hand to prove Melisa wrong. This test isn’t so much for Reyhan’s sake. It’s to shut Melisa down and show her that they solve their problems together. No matter what she throws at them.

“I’m adjusting the dosage on her medication because some of her numbers are a little low. But other than that, she’s doing much better,” the doctor tells them. “You two are doing a great job with her. Keep up the good work. I hear the adoption will be final soon?”

Emir and Reyhan look at each other and have a silent conversation. She sends Ayla to the corner in the doctor’s office with the toys to let her play for a few minutes while they talk to the doctor. Once Ayla is out of ear shot, Reyhan nods at Emir to continue.

“The adoption hit a little snag,” Emir admits. “There are questions about Ayla’s paternity. We need to get her tested against some samples. We’re hoping we can use blood you’ve already drawn from her for the tests.”

“That may not be necessary,” the doctor explains. “Are you trying to prove or disprove paternity? I assume you want to disprove someone’s claim on Ayla. Do you know the blood type of the person claiming to be her father? Blood types can’t prove paternity. But there are cases they can disprove paternity.”

Emir tells the doctor his blood type and the doctor pulls up Ayla’s file on his computer. It barely takes him a minute to find the answer to the question.

“Good news. You two have nothing to worry about. The blood types aren’t compatible. There’s no way a man with the blood type you told me could have fathered Ayla. Of course, a DNA test will be necessary for any legal proceedings. But that test will only back up what I’ve told you here today.”

Emir turns to Reyhan with a big smile on his face.

“Thank you, Doctor bey. You really have eased our minds.”

“Well, I’m glad,” the doctor returns the smile. “Anything to keep our little Miss Ayla happy and healthy.”

With one last reminder to them to ensure Ayla gets started on her new medication immediately and to not miss any doses, the doctor lets them go. Emir feels like he has a new lease on life. He feels like their family got a second chance at happiness. Although it made him angry and sad Reyhan needed the test, he’s glad they looked into getting the proof. Now, they all can breathe easier.

“Is this really over?” Reyhan asks on the way home. “Will we really be able to adopt Ayla now?”

“It really is,” Emir says, taking her hand and pressing a quick kiss there. “All we need now is to get the court to order a DNA test. But I doubt Melisa will take her game that far. A forged test to stop the process is one thing. Getting a real test done will only make her look like a fool.”

And Melisa won’t want to look like a fool. She’ll have to give up this game. There’s no winning for her.

“I almost want to be there to see her face when she finds out,” Reyhan says. “But never seeing her again will be good enough for me. Making Ayla ours will be enough for me. I’m ready to get on with our life, Emir. I’m ready for our happily ever after.”

“And that’s exactly what we’re going to have,” he promises her. “It’s time for that happily ever after.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

After telling Defne the news from the doctor, the woman gets busy with working towards finishing this adoption case. Just as Emir guessed, the court did in fact order a new DNA test based on the blood type results. The test would be handled by an independent lab with the results being sent immediately to the court.

But on the day of testing, Melisa didn’t show up. Two weeks passed and Melisa missed two other test appointments. At that point, her claims were dismissed and the adoption was set to become official the following week. It took longer than they initially thought, but it’s finally happening. Their dreams are about to come true.

They go to Defne and Zafer’s for a pre-adoption slash pre-birth celebration dinner. Or in other words, the last time the foursome will be able to get together before they all officially become parents with Defne’s due date getting closer and closer. Emine and Murat happily watch their “granddaughter” for the evening. Because after all they’ve been through, Reyhan and Emir deserve this time of celebration.

“Can you believe it, Man? We’re really doing this,” Emir says, his astonishment evidenced in a slightly drunken tone. “This time last year, I know neither of us could have imagined the life we’re living now. Married. About to become fathers.”

“And happy about it,” Zafer adds with a laugh. “But here we are. About to make dreams that we never knew we wanted come true.”

“Are you?” Emir asks his friend. “Are you truly happy?”

“Really and truly,” Zafer admits. “Defne is kind of amazing. She’s really amazing, actually. Every day I wake up looking at her beautiful face and realize my life was nothing without her.”

“Who are you and what have you done with my friend?” Emir teases, laughing when Zafer blushes.

“You’re one to talk. I blame you for this, by the way. You and all your gushing over your wife. I told you you two were going to rub off on me.”

The doorbell rings just then and Defne waddles to the door to get it. After signing for the delivery, she turns to Emir and Reyhan with a mysterious smile on her face.

“And now you’re about to see how amazing my wife is,” Zafer whispers to him, going to stand next to Defne. She hands the envelope to Emir and Reyhan and they just wait on the reaction.

“What’s this?” Emir wonders, opening the package. He pulls out papers and quickly scans them. Reyhan is reading over his shoulder and lets out a gasp.

“The adoption papers? It’s official?” she asks.

“I thought we had to wait until next week,” Emir says. “But look, Baby. The date. It’s today.”

“I may have pushed this through the system,” Defne admits proudly. “I know you were worried about any other tricks Melisa would try to play, Reyhan. So I did what I could to get this approved as quickly as possible.”

“Does this mean …”

“It means Ayla is ours,” Emir tells her, pulling her into his arms. “She’s officially and forever ours.”

He spins her around, pausing to kiss her.

“Get a room,” Zafer teases them. But he wraps his arms around Defne and gives his friends a content smile. It’s good to see them finally living and loving so freely.

But not everyone is happy. Melisa watches them much like she always does. She has been following Emir and Reyhan all week, looking for other weaknesses. She was upset when her plot to stop the adoption didn’t work. She was sure Reyhan would either leave Emir or force Emir to leave by proving she didn’t trust him. Melisa knows Reyhan asked for a paternity test. But instead of getting mad, Emir apparently agreed to one. Melisa wasn’t expecting that. She wasn’t expecting to actually have to take a test. A test that would prove her claims completely baseless.

But she’s running out of time now. The adoption will be legal soon and it will be that much harder to get Emir. If not impossible. That kid will tie them together forever.

“But what if there is no kid?” Melisa whispers into the darkness. “What will the two of you do then?”

Time for plan B.

She picks up the phone and places a call.

“Take the kid. Now.”

And just like that, she’s in control of this game again. She frowns, watching Emir spin Reyhan around. Kiss her.

“Let’s see how happy you two will be without your precious little princess. Let’s see who Emir chooses to be with when Reyhan can no longer dangle that kid in front of his nose.”


	20. Chapter 20

He stops her just at the door when they get home. The sly smile on his face makes her suspicious. She narrows her eyes at him.

“Reyhan hanım. I had a lovely evening,” he says. “And I have you home, just in time for your curfew. Your parents won’t have to worry.”

She rolls her eyes at how silly he’s being.

“This is the part of the date when your suitor tries for a kiss good night,” he informs her, pulling her towards him. He leans down, looking as if to kiss her, but sweeps his lips across her cheek until his mouth is near her ear.

“The excitement is in knowing we could get caught at any minute,” he whispers, kissing her cheek.

“Wondering how much we can touch before your father peeks through the blinds at us.” Kisses her other cheek and wraps his hands around her waist. “The challenge of every young dating couple.”

She smiles.

“Well it’s a good thing we’re married, isn’t it?” she asks him.

Her eyes drift closed when their lips finally meet. She whimpers and wraps her arms around his neck, trying to pull him even closer. Kissing him has become her new favorite thing.

He walks her backwards towards the house. When they reach the door, it doesn’t stop him like he expects. Instead, it pushes open under their weight and they nearly fall into the house.

“Whoa,” he laughs, grabbing her just before she completely loses her balance. But then his surprise turns to worry. “Wait, why is the front door open like this? Did you open it?”

She shakes her head to the negative, but it isn’t necessary. He knows she didn’t open it. Both her arms were around his neck. He takes her by the hand and pulls her behind him. Something is wrong. They slowly and quietly step into the house and he reaches for the light switch on the wall by the door. When the lights come on, Reyhan’s shocked gasp tells him his instincts are correct. The room is a mess and his eyes land on a curled mass on the floor.

“Murat bey!” He runs over to the man as he’s just starting to stir and helps him sit up. “Murat bey, are you alright? What happened?”

“Where’s Ayla? Where’s Anne?” Reyhan’s panicked voice asks. She calls out to both of them, running towards Ayla’s room.

“Anne!” she screams, when she finds Emine collapsed on the floor with blood pooling around her head. “Emir! Help!”

Instantly he’s there, staring in shock. He sucks in a deep breath when he sees what has Reyhan so upset.

“Come here, sweetheart,” he says to Reyhan, not wanting her to be faced with this terrible sight. But Reyhan won’t leave Emine’s side. So Emir goes to kneel next to her.

He turns to Murat to tell him to call for an ambulance, but the man already has the phone in his hand. Even leaning unsteadily against the door frame, he makes the call.

Then he turns his attention back to the room, trying to control his fear. But he can’t. Because Ayla is nowhere to be found. She’s gone.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The police arrive just ahead of the ambulance. Emine is still unconscious, so they take her immediately to the hospital. Murat bey is slightly dazed and there’s a bump on his head from where someone hit him, but he’s lucid and able to tell the police what happened.

“Men broke in,” he explains. “Three of them. All wearing black. All wearing masks. They hit me first. I heard Emine and Ayla screaming just before I passed out. I woke up when my children returned home.”

He turns a teary gaze to Reyhan.

“Kızım, I’m so sorry. You trusted us with your child and we lost her.”

“Baba, no. Don’t say that.” Reyhan goes to him and hugs him. “You and Anne tried to protect her with your lives. I almost lost all of you tonight.”

“No one is lost,” Emir chimes in. “Emine anne is going to be fine. And we’re going to find Ayla.”

He turns to the police.

  
“I have an idea of where you can start.”

He tells them all about Melisa. He’d bet his life she’s behind this.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Melisa was expecting the police to show up. So she made sure she spent the evening in a public place being highly visible. She made sure she had an alibi and no connection to where Ayla is being held. Once the police clear her of this, then she’ll proceed with her plans.

She’s about an hour into the police questioning her when they drop the news on her.

“Are you sure you can’t help us, Melisa hanım?” the detective asks her. “A child’s life is at stake. Her grandmother is in the hospital because of what those men did to her. And her father is convinced you have something to do with this.”

“Grandmother?” Melisa asks, clearly shaken. This is news to her. Ayla was supposed to be watched by a nanny. A nanny Melisa paid handsomely, with a bit of blackmail tossed in, to conveniently look the other way when the men showed up to take Ayla.

“The child was at home with grandparents at the time of the abduction,” the detective explains. “Both were hurt, but the woman is in the hospital. Unconscious.”

Melisa goes pale at that. No. This was definitely not supposed to happen.

“That’s terrible,” Melisa says, genuinely upset at what she’s hearing. No one was supposed to get hurt. That’s not a part of her plan.

  
“Trust that my client would have nothing to do with harming an old woman,” Melisa’s lawyer interjects. “She’s a respected, upstanding member of this country and frankly, it’s beginning to offend us that you would think so. Now, if you have no further questions, or no charges to bring against my client, this interview is over.”

“For what it’s worth,” Melisa says after rising from her seat. “I hope you find that little girl. And find whoever hurt that woman.”

When she gets out of the police station, she needs privacy. She needs to think. She leaves her lawyer and jumps in her own car. She drives around for a bit, making sure she isn’t being followed, before going to where her men are holding Ayla. If she didn’t need their continued discretion and silence, she would fire them. If she hadn’t been so impulsive and used men who now know what she looks like, she’d turn them in. Hurting people was not what she paid them for.

“What happened?” she demands to know when she walks into the small house at the end of a long, rural road. No one will be finding them out here. “The nanny was supposed to let you in, just like I paid her. How did you end up nearly killing the grandmother?”

“The nanny wasn’t there,” the leader explains. “We had to adapt.”

Adapt? Melisa just rolls her eyes and breathes out a heavy, frustrated sigh.

“Get out of here,” she tells them. She doesn’t even want to see them anymore. “And pray nothing happens to that woman.”

They really messed this up for her. Her initial plans involved giving Emir a choice … life with her (and Ayla) or life with Reyhan. At the end of the day, she was confident that Emir would choose her. But the woman getting hurt changes things. He may not forgive her for this.

“What am I going to do now, kid?” she asks with a sigh.

She gives Ayla a wary glance, grateful the child is asleep right now. Because right now, she can’t deal with her. And for the first time in nearly a dozen years, she begins to wonder if any of this is worth it. Is Emir worth it? How has she become the woman that uses a child to trap a man?

She looks in the mirror. And she’s not sure she likes what she sees.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It takes two days, but Emine finally wakes up. The men who took Ayla didn’t seem to have actually hit her. But she did stumble and fall and hit her head. There was some swelling, but no actual damage was discovered once that swelling decreased. Everyone was grateful when she woke up.

But once she did, it took everything to keep her in the bed. The doctors said she needed to stay in the hospital for a few more days. But she was ready to go out and look for Ayla. Only Reyhan’s eventual collapse made her stay put. They had given Reyhan a bed next to hers. She stayed to keep an eye on the child of her heart.

Emir was at his wit’s end. As worried as he is about Reyhan, he’s almost grateful she passed out. Neither of them have slept since Ayla was taken. But it was taking a harder toll on her than anyone else. It wasn’t surprising her body just shut down. She’s at least getting the rest she needs.

“Ayla,” she whimpers in her sleep, tears leaking from her eyes. “Must … find … Ayla.”

He takes her hand between his own and kisses it, trying to comfort her through the bad dreams.

“Why isn’t the sedative working,” he quietly asks the doctor standing at the foot of her bed. The doctor had been looking through her chart. “She needs peaceful sleep.”

“We gave her a very mild sedative,” the doctor explains. “Just something to calm her. We didn’t want to give her anything stronger until her blood test results came back. You told us she had been sick and hospitalized a few months ago. Her original doctor is looking through the results now and will get back to us on what she needs. But after what she’s been through in the past few days, I suspect all she needs is rest. A little time to mentally check out.”

“Our child is missing,” Emir says, his voice thick with tears. “Who’s taking care of her? Who’s making her her favorite foods? Or singing her her favorite song? Reyhan is an amazing mother. It’s killing her to not know …”

He cuts himself off, not wanting to get too morbid. He’s so afraid of what’s happening with Ayla. But he’s trying to keep faith. Despite what the police said, he still believes Melisa is involved. Melisa wants him. She’s not going to hurt Ayla because she knows he’d kill her if she did. So he has to believe Melisa has her, and that she’s okay. The alternative is too heartbreaking.

“Emir,” Reyhan says groggily, reaching out for him. “Where’s Ayla? Where’s my baby?”

“Shh! You just rest, Sweetheart.” He kisses her forehead. “I’m going to go find her. I promise.”

“Her medicine. She needs to take her medicine.” Reyhan’s voice trails off as she goes back to sleep.

But Emir is suddenly very afraid again. Reyhan is right. Ayla needs her medicine. The doctor had warned them that she needed to finish the full course of the new medication at the last appointment. But she’s going on three days now without it.

“I have to go,” he suddenly says, looking to Emine and Murat. “She’s right. Ayla is going to get sick without her meds.”

“We’re here with her,” Emine assures him. “I can’t go anywhere for another day anyway. You go find our girl. Murat and I will take care of Reyhan.”

He’s still torn about leaving Reyhan behind. But a new sense of urgency sparks him. He runs out the room to make more phone calls. Surely one of the detectives he’s hired by now has heard something. They have to. Because Ayla is running out of time.

“Hold on, Baby Girl. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Even if he has to walk into the trap Melisa has laid for him. He’ll do whatever it takes. He won’t be able to take Reyhan’s heartbreak if he comes back empty handed.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“Hey kid,” Melisa says, nudging Ayla awake. The little girl keeps falling asleep and she doesn’t know why. Normally, she wouldn’t care. A sleeping child is a quiet child. And she’s needed the peace and quiet to plan how next to get Emir. But as it turns out, the kid isn’t so bad. She’s sweet and funny. She’s everything Melisa never learned to be.

And she likes to hug. Melisa can’t seem to avoid the hugging. Melisa also can’t figure out why she doesn’t _want_ to avoid the hugging. She even held the kid all throughout an hour long crying spell. The girl misses her parents.

_“Patience, Little One,”_ Melisa had whispered to the child. _“Your daddy will be here soon. Then we’ll all live happily ever after.”_

That had only made her cry harder. That had only made her cry for her mother. She finally went to sleep crying for Reyhan the whole time. Melisa had pushed away the smallest twinge of guilt and reminded herself that in the end, Emir will be hers. And Ayla can get used to a new mother.

But this quiet isn’t a good quiet. She’s too quiet. Too still. And Melisa is worried.

“Kid?” Melisa calls to her again, concerned at how still she is. “Ayla … Ayla … wake up!”

She’s panicking now. Ayla isn’t waking up, no matter how much Melisa calls her. Her skin feels cool, even though her cheeks are flushed. But the slight blue tinge to Ayla’s lips makes her heart stop.

“No, no, no. Don’t do this to me,” Melisa begs. “Wake up.”

Ayla sleepily blinks her eyes before sluggishly calling for Reyhan again, her words slurring. Her eyes drift close again and Melisa finally realizes she needs help. She hesitates for a second and thinks what this means for her plan. But when Ayla starts struggling for breath, she forgets about her plans. This is a matter of life and death. Would she really risk this child’s life to get what she wants?

“He would never forgive me for this,” Melisa realizes. And she knows there’s only one thing to do. If only to keep Emir from completely hating her.

“Let’s go, Kid.”

She wraps Ayla carefully in a blanket and runs out of the tiny house. They’re so far away that it would take forever for an ambulance to get there. Driving her to the hospital is the fastest way. It may be the only way.

“We have to get to the hospital. Now!” she orders the one man she kept with her. He doesn’t ask questions. He just jumps behind the wheel while Melisa climbs in the back with Ayla.

“Saving her is my only chance with Emir,” Melisa keeps telling herself. “I’m only doing this for Emir.”

But she has no explanation for her need to hold the child closer to her chest. Or for why her heart is racing with fear and worry. Or her silent pleas to Ayla to just open her eyes.

“You’re going to be fine, Little One,” she says, pressing a kiss to Ayla’s forehead. “Just hold on.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Reyhan wakes up when the nurse comes to check on her. She looks around and blinks in confusion. Where is she?

“What’s happening?” she asks, lifting a hand to her forehead. When she sees the line coming out of her arm, she’s even more confused. “Where am I? Am I in the hospital?”

“Just relax,” the nurse says with a friendly smile. “You just needed a bit of rest and fluids. You’re fine. Let me help you sit up.”

Once she has Reyhan settled in an upright position, Reyhan is able to look around the room and realizes where she is. This is Emine anne’s room. But the woman is no longer there.

“Where’s Emir? Where’s my mother?” she asks, slightly panicked. “Did something happen to Ayla?”

Defne comes into the room when she hears the commotion. She smiles at the nurse as the nurse walks past her and leaves them alone.

“Reyhan,” she says soothingly. “Calm down. Everything is fine. Emine anne is getting one last brain scan before the doctors agree to release her. Murat bey went with her.”

“She’s fine?”

“I promise. She’s fine,” Defne assure her. “They’ll be back in about twenty minutes. And Emir just left to make some calls to the detectives. Zafer went with him, so he’s not alone.”

“Ayla?” Reyhan asks quietly, the pain in her voice breaking Defne’s heart.

“Everyone is still looking for her, Canım.”

Reyhan just closes her eyes and nods. She would know if Ayla were near. But she can’t feel the girl. She lifts a hand to press to her aching heart.

“Where’s my baby, Defne?”

“They’re going to find her,” Defne says, taking Reyhan’s hand. “You just have to believe. Trust our husbands. Emir won’t stop until he can bring you your little girl and Zafer won’t leave his side until he does. You know that.”

“And what do I do? Just sit here and wait?” Reyhan shakes her head and tries to get out of the bed. Defne tries to stop her. “No! I have to get out of here, Defne. I have to find my daughter.”

Defne isn’t sure she can hold Reyhan back for much longer. But fortunately the doctor comes in right then and says he needs to speak to Reyhan. Defne goes out into the hall to give them privacy.

“Doctor bey, when can I get out of here? I feel fine,” she assures him. “But I need to go.”

“I understand how you feel, Reyhan hanım,” the doctor says with a sympathetic sigh. “Your daughter is still missing and you want to find her.”

“I _need_ to find her,” she corrects.

"You _need_ to stay here," he says. "Unless you want to sacrifice one child for the sake of the other."

That stops her cold. She runs back his last words to see if she understood him correctly.

"Wait ... what did you say?"

Did he just say …

“Am I …”

The doctor nods. Smiles.

"Congratulations, Reyhan hanım. It seems you’re going to have a baby. You’re pregnant.”


	21. Chapter 21

Reyhan is still in shock when Emir returns to the room. She’s not sure how long it’s been since the doctor left after telling her that life changing news.

_Ben hamileyim_ , she says to herself, trying to make herself believe it. She gently lays a hand on her belly and smiles. She’s pregnant. She’s going to have a baby.

The doctor had to do an ultrasound before she would believe it. She still has the grainy image in her hand and can’t help but stare in awe at it. The first picture of her baby.

“You’ll never believe it,” Emir says, running to her bedside. She manages to tuck the ultrasound image into the pocket of her robe before he sees it. This is special news and deserves a special announcement. She’ll tell him when the time is right. Besides, the excitement in his voice is making her curious. He seems to have good news too. His next words confirm it and has her trying to get out the bed.

“Ayla,” he smiles, taking her hand and pressing it to his racing heart. “She’s here. They found her and she’s here.”

Reyhan looks around him, expecting to see Ayla at the door. She squeezes his hand anxiously when she can’t find the girl.

“Where? Bring her in. Why didn’t you bring her in with you?”

He lets out a deep breath and she knows she’s not going to like what she’s about to hear.

“She’s here, but she’s sick,” he tells her.

Reyhan goes pale.

“She’s fine,” Emir quickly adds. “But you know she’s been off her medication for a few days. So the doctors need to look her over right now.”

“Take me to her,” Reyhan says, finally managing to get out the bed. She rushes around the room trying to find her clothes, getting frustrated when she can’t seem to think straight. “I have to go to her.”

Emir grabs her and pulls her to his chest.

“Shh! Sakin ol. Calm down, Sweetheart,” he says, trying to sooth her. “I told you. Ayla is here and she’s fine.”

He helps her to quickly dress after she’s calmed down some. Taking her hand, they walk out the door. She puts a hand on her stomach and bites her lip nervously. _Hold on, my little one_. _We’re about to go get your sister_. She briefly wonders again if maybe she should tell Emir. But again decides against it. Not now. She’ll tell him later. Right now, she has to get to Ayla.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Melisa sees them before they see her. They’re walking hand in hand. A united front. A couple in love. She doesn’t know why she could never see it before. She doesn’t know why she allowed herself to believe she ever had a chance with him.

When Emir finally becomes aware of her, he narrows his eyes and storms towards her. He grabs her and gives her a hard shake that leaves her teeth rattling. Thankfully, Reyhan pulls him away. All it takes is her hand on him, and his haze of fury is broken.

“She’s not important right now,” Reyhan says to Emir, completely ignoring Melisa. Melisa doesn’t know whether to be relieved or offended.

The two turn their back on Melisa and look into Ayla’s room, again becoming that unbreakable unit. And again Melisa mentally slaps herself for being so oblivious.

The doctor comes out to speak to them, explaining how Melisa brought her in on time. Ayla has been started on her medication again and will need to stay in the hospital for a few days until she’s done with it all. But she’ll be fine. The doctor tells them he needs a few more minutes and then they’ll be able to go in with Ayla and stay as long as they want.

“Thank you, Doctor,” Emir says, letting out a relieved sigh. He wraps his arm around Reyhan and pulls her closer. She easily melts into him. And Melisa envies the ease they have with each other. As if they were two parts of the same whole.

“I am such an idiot,” Melisa says, shaking her head as she looks at them. “Your mother really fooled me.”

“Why are you here?” Emir growls when Melisa’s comment reminds him of her presence. “Why aren’t you with the police?”

“Emir, you know my lawyer isn’t going to let me go to jail. There’s no proof I took Ayla or that she’s been with me this whole time. For all anyone knows, the kidnappers deserted her and I just happened to find her. And I brought her straight here for treatment. Some might think I’m a hero.”

“Melisa …” he growls again. A warning.

Reyhan holds up a hand to stop him and again Melisa marvels at the power this small woman has over Emir.

“You’re no hero,” Reyhan says to Melisa. “But you did save Ayla’s life by bringing her here. So I do thank you for that.”

Melisa is taken aback. Reyhan continues to surprise her. She really is nothing that Cavidan said.

“Look,” Melisa says with a sigh. “I’m not going to offend you by asking for forgiveness. What I did was unforgivable, even by my standards. But for what it’s worth, I never meant for anyone to get hurt. And I’m sorry about your mother. I truly had no part in what happened to her.”

Reyhan stares at her long and hard. But finally she gives a little nod.

“I believe you,” she says. “But you caused more hurt than physical, Melisa. You came and deliberately tried to tear apart my family. But know this … I will _never_ let that happen. _Asla_.”

“I didn’t think of it that way. Trust me. Cavidan hanım convinced me you and Emir were miserable. That you never wanted to marry each other in the first place. She said I would be saving Emir.”

“By taking my child from her mother?” Emir asks incredulously. “Keeping her to the point of her relapsing from her heart condition? That’s how you tried to save me?”

Melisa hadn’t known about the heart condition. And she feels even worse.

“Emir …” Melisa tries to interject.

“No, Melisa. You can’t throw this off on my mother. The first thing I told you was how much I loved my wife and my family. But you wanted to believe what you wanted to believe. Don’t blame my mother for that.”

Melisa can only nod.

“Now, for the last time … go. I know your lawyers have made sure the police have nothing on you, no matter how much I try to press charges. So just do us a favor and leave. And this time, stay gone.”

Melisa is hurt, but there’s nothing she can do. But there’s one thing that might help.

“I know you’ll never forgive me, but I still have one thing to say,” Melisa starts. “Take care of Ayla. That little girl is very special and she deserves what you two are giving her. So don’t underestimate your mother. She really hates Reyhan. And she really wants her gone. I doubt my failure to split you two up will stop her mission. So be careful. She’s getting desperate. And in my experience, desperate people are dangerous.”

With those parting words, she walks away. She plans on getting on a plane to return to America and never looking back. She blew into town and messed up their lives. She can own up to that. But she also did all she could to make sure they’re prepared for what they’ll face next. Melisa is afraid there won’t be any stopping Cavidan Tarhun now. Fortunately, Melisa won’t be around to see it. She can only hope Emir and Reyhan are as strong as they seem. Because they’re going to need to be.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It’s a few hours later before Reyhan and Emir get back to her room. She got the word that her nurses were searching frantically for her and decided she needed to return, if only to let them know she would be checking out. There’s no need for her to stay. There’s nothing wrong with her. She’s perfectly fine. Another secret smile grows on her face when she looks down at her belly. More than fine, actually. She’s perfect.

“Can you grab the clothes I left on the bed?” she asks Emir when they start to pack her things. She doesn’t want to be away from Ayla longer than is necessary. The little girl has spent too much of her life alone in a hospital. But she has a family now. And Reyhan isn’t going to let her be alone ever again. Neither of her children will ever be alone. She can’t wait to tell Ayla she’s going to be a big sister.

“What’s this?”

Reyhan turns at Emir’s confused question. The ultrasound photo she had tucked away into the pocket of her robe earlier goes fluttering to the floor when Emir picks up the robe. Reyhan had forgotten all about the picture. But maybe this is a sign.

“That’s for you,” Reyhan says with a cryptic smile. “A note from the doctor. I forgot to give it to you earlier.”

“Really. Hmm …” Emir bends to pick it up and studies it for a moment. His eyebrows scrunch adorably, letting Reyhan know he has no idea what he’s looking at. He scans it a few more seconds before realization dawns. He looks up at her with wide eyes. “Reyhan?”

She just smiles and nods, happy tears filling her eyes.

“Is this what I think this is?”

“It’s our baby,” she barely manages to say before he’s crossed the room and scooped her up into his arms. She’s laughing when he spins her around, placing kisses all over her face.

“A baby? We’re having a baby?”

“Calm down,” she laughs. “Everyone in the whole hospital is going to hear you.”

“I don’t care! I want the whole world to hear!” He spins her again before he realizes that he needs to be more careful of the precious cargo she’s carrying. He carries her over to the bed and lets her take a seat. He sits next to her.

“How far along are you?” he asks, still staring at the image. He can’t seem to stop staring at it.

“A bit more than two months.”

“And you're okay? You’re good? Both you and the baby are good?” His eyes open wide when he remembers how she passed out earlier. “Is that why you fainted? Is something wrong?”

“Emir,” she says with a gentle smile, cupping his cheek with her hand. “We’re both fine. But this does explain the nausea I’ve been having. And the fatigue. I thought it was just remnants of when I was sick earlier. The doctors did say the after effects could last for months.”

That sends him into another panic.

“Should we have been more careful?” he winces. “You know, making sure you didn’t get pregnant so soon after your illness? I didn’t think. Did I put you in danger?”

“Emir. You sweet man,” she says, pulling him into her arms. “You haven’t done anything but made me the happiest woman in the world. The way you love me makes my heart fly. Everytime I’m in your arms, I don't want you to ever let me go.”

She sits back so that she can look into his eyes.

“You brought Ayla into our lives and made us a family. Made me a mother. And you’ve done it again with this little one.”

She takes his hand and places it on her stomach.

“And now my heart is flying even higher. I’m happier than I ever thought I would be when we started this whole thing,” she admits. “I married you because it was my uncle’s dying wish. And I couldn’t let him down. I stayed married to you because I promised him I wouldn’t let anything break my marriage. But you gave me a reason to stay, Emir. You gave me your heart and you took mine in return. I love you so much that it scares me. Because I no longer know how to live without you. My heart is only alive when I’m with you.”

He wants to smile. To laugh. To cry. Knowing she loves him the way he loves her sets something free inside of him that he didn’t even know was there. He thought she had his whole heart before. But now, she owns his soul. And he knows without a doubt that he would do absolutely anything for her.

He leans over and rests his forehead against hers. They sit and just breathe each other in.

“You are my everything,” he tells her. “I love you with all that I am.”

She smiles at him and wipes away a tear he didn’t even realize was falling down his cheek. He takes her hand and presses a kiss to the palm of it. He feels like their future is new and full of wonderful promises. She’s his life. His everything. With her by his side, he can face any obstacle and win.

“Let’s get out of here,” he says. “Let’s get Ayla well and hopefully never see the inside of this place again.”

“At least until this one is born,” she laughs, rubbing her belly.

She takes his hand, and together they walk out the door. Funny, their new life together began in a hospital. They found Ayla in a hospital. But he’s right. If they never see the inside of one again, it’ll be too soon. It’s time for them to be healthy and be happy. To live this life of love. A love that even a year ago didn’t seem possible. But a love that is now impossible to be without.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Their “no more hospitals” vow lasts all of three weeks. But this time, it’s for a good reason.

“He’s gorgeous,” Reyhan coos, holding the tiny infant in her arms. She dips her nose down so she can breathe in his fresh, baby scent. “I could just eat him up.”

“Congratulations, you two,” Emir says, smiling at Zafer and Defne.

Defne had given birth to the healthy baby boy earlier that morning. He came a little early, but all is well. The doctors plan to keep him an extra day, but just as a precaution.

“Isn’t he perfect?” Zafer adds, a huge grin on his face that is at odds with the red, bloodshot eyes. It had been a long night for him. But he couldn’t be happier. “This is going to be you in a couple of months, Emir. Are you ready?”

Reyhan just laughs as she gives the baby back to his parents. “Ready” is the last thing Emir is. Once the reality of her pregnancy hit him, he went into research mode. He ordered book after book until Reyhan made him stop. The more books he bought and read, the more panicked he’s become.

“Only 28 more weeks to go,” Emir sighs. “We have a lot to do. Even less if he comes early like your baby.”

“Don’t get him started,” Reyhan says, shaking her head. “He’s not going to sleep for the next 6 months at this rate.”

“Then we’ll be up together,” Zafer laughs. “Who knows when this little guy is going to start sleeping through the night.”

“Don’t jinx us,” Defne warns him, giving him a playful scowl. He just smiles and kisses her forehead.

Emir’s phone rings and he goes out into the hall to answer it.

“At least my dad and his wife will be here,” Zafer adds. “They’re flying in as we speak. Apparently, the latest and greatest stepmother is thrilled to be a grandmother and nearly stopped speaking to my dad when she realized he hadn’t told her about the wedding or the baby. She demanded the situation be fixed and immediately booked a flight here. And strangely, my father seems to actually love this wife, and is doing whatever she wants.”

“She seems lovely,” Defne says. “She called and we talked for a long time. She’s very excited to see the baby. And you too, Zafer. She sounds like she cares.”

He just shrugs. There are clearly issues there, but doesn’t seem upset his family will be coming. Just kind of sad. Hopefully the baby can help them all get over past hurts.

Emir comes back during the awkward silence and all eyes go to him. And immediately, they can see something is wrong.

“Emir?” Reyhan asks, a bad feeling growing in the pit of her stomach. “What is it? What’s happened?”

“What? Um … nothing. It’s nothing. Everything is fine,” he says, trying to appear normal. “But we do have to go. Your dad called. Something came up with them and they can’t watch Ayla for much longer.”

They decided against replacing their traitorous nanny after discovering how easily she was able to be paid off by Melisa. It’s going to be a long time before they trust Ayla with anyone other than family again.

“Oh. Okay,” she says, still giving him a concerned look. He’s acting very strange.

They say their goodbyes to Zafer and Defne before leaving the new parents alone. The walk to the car was long and quiet. But finally, Reyhan can’t hold in her curiosity any longer.

“That wasn’t my father, was it? Who called? I can tell something is wrong. So tell me,” she demands. “What happened?”

He just sighs and runs his hand through his hair.

“Emir. You’re worrying me,” she says. Her hand goes to her stomach as if to shield the baby from what has to be bad news.

Noticing her stress, he takes her other hand and kisses it.

“Amca called,” he starts. “Something has come up and they need me at home.”

He winces, not wanting to tell her this part. But also knowing he can’t keep it from her.

“Baba is sick.”

“Sick? What do you mean he’s sick? He was fine. What happened to him?”

Emir tries to calm her down, but can’t get a word in with all her rapid fire questions.

“Is it the disease he had before?” Reyhan continues questioning him. “I thought he had recovered. Has it come back?”

“All very good questions, My Love. And as soon as we get there, we can hopefully get some answers.”

That stops her cold.

“There?” she asks, turning pale. She knows what he’s about to say and she isn’t sure how she feels about it.

“Back home. To Istanbul.”

Back to the place where she spent the worst days of her life. But once again, her uncle needs her. She can’t let him down. And Emir is going to need her. Where he goes, she goes. Separation is not an option.

“Okay,” she nods, letting out a heavy sigh. She can accept that this is the only choice they have. “Back to Istanbul we go.”


	22. Chapter 22

_Part III_

Istanbul. The place she thought she had escaped from. Yet here she is again. The past few months in Ankara had seemed like a fairy tale. She thought she and Emir were living their happily ever after. She had convinced herself she’d never have to worry about Cavidan Tarhun again. Turns out she was only fooling herself.

Fortunately for Reyhan, “back to Istanbul” did not mean back to the Tarhun estate. They will be spending a considerable amount of time there, due to the nature of Hikmet’s illness, but they won’t be living there. They will be living with Emine and Murat in their palatial estate. A home so large it makes even Emir’s eyes goggle.

“This place is huge,” he whispers to Reyhan, laughing at the irony. “My mother would die of envy knowing we’re living here.”

“Then it’s probably best we don’t tell her,” Reyhan whispers back, trying not to lose track of where they are as they take an impromptu tour around the place. The estate really is huge. It is comprised of six different wings, each wing basically its own home. Emir and Reyhan will have their own wing.

“Feel free to decorate this place anyway you like. Consider it your home,” Emine says, giving them huge smiles. “I’m just so happy this house will finally have some life again. You’re going to be very busy, Reyhancığım. We can take our time with the nursery. But we can get people in here immediately to work on the room for our Princess. Isn’t that right, Princess Ayla?”

Reyhan just shakes her head. She thought the move was going to be hard on Ayla, moving to a whole new city and everything, but she’s super excited. The girl is taking the change like a champion. Reyhan is finding that Ayla has an adventurous soul. She seems to thrive under even some of the most challenging circumstances. This move is just another adventure to her.

They take the rest of the day to get settled and decide to go see Hikmet early the next day. Emir and Reyhan are both anxious to see him, but even flying in on Murat bey’s private plane made the trip tiring for Reyhan. Her prior illness makes the pregnancy a bit higher risk than normal, so they didn’t want to take any chances with her health. It’s going to be hard enough to see Hikmet so sick as it is. Not to mention having to face Cavidan. Emir doesn’t want Reyhan to face so much stress in one day.

But morning comes and Emir knows he can’t delay the visit any longer. Standing outside of his family home, he takes Reyhan by the hand.

“Are you ready?”

She bites her lip and gives a small nod. He knocks on the door.

“Emir? Reyhan? Come in, Çocuklar!” Melike says when she opens the door to them. They decided to keep the visit a secret so no one was expecting them. But this welcome from Melike warms their hearts.

She hugs them both, almost forgetting to close the door. She puts her hands on both their faces in turn to “get a good look at them” before declaring them both too thin and promising them a dinner full of their favorites.

“Slow down,” Emir laughs. “We actually came to see Baba. We heard about what happened to him.”

“Ah yes,” Melike nods, her mood sobering. “Terrible accident. It’s still a mystery what happened.”

“Why didn’t anyone tell us sooner?” Reyhan asks. “We wouldn’t have known if Kemal abi didn’t call.”

“We can save the questions for later,” Emir says. “Let me go see him now and we can talk about what happened later.”

“Emir,” Reyhan protests.

“We talked about this,” Emir reminds her. “I go in first. That was always the plan. Amca warned us that it’s hard to see him like this. I don’t want this to be too stressful for you.”

He looks down at the hand she has covering her stomach. He frowns.

“Are you feeling okay?” he asks her, cupping her cheek with his hand. “How about some tea? Melike Abla?”

“Of course,” she says with a knowing smile. “You go see your father. I’ll take care of Reyhan.”

When he’s gone, Melike turns to Reyhan, her smile growing larger.

“You two seem close,” Melike says. “Dare I say, happy?”

“Things are good,” Reyhan admits with a dreamy smile, rubbing her stomach and causing Melike to gasp when she notices the act.

“Kızım! Are you …”

“Shh!” Reyhan silences her, looking around to make sure no one is within hearing distance. “It’s a surprise. We’re going to tell the family later.”

“A baby? Oh, Reyhan,” she says, throwing her arm around the younger woman. “You can’t know how happy that makes me.”

Reyhan blinks away her own tears of happiness. She was hoping for this kind of reaction, but not expecting it. Sadly, she knows not everyone in the house will feel this way. Cavidan in particular. She’s too uncertain of how the woman will react to news of both this baby and Ayla’s adoption to feel any true relief. And she’s too worried about her uncle to be completely happy right now.

“Melike Abla,” Reyhan starts. “Please tell me what happened with my uncle. How did this happen?”

“No one knows, Kızım,” she explains. “He was in his office, working. I went to take him some coffee and found him collapsed on the floor. It could have been his heart, we don’t know. He was still having trouble from time to time. But it was usually under control with his medication. So again, we still don’t know what caused him to collapse. And unfortunately when he fell, he hit his head on his desk. The head injury is what’s causing the most trouble. The damage has left him completely paralyzed. He’s unable to move or speak.”

Reyhan closes her eyes, this time unable to stop the tears.

“My poor uncle,” she cries softly. “I can’t believe what he’s going through.”

She must look a little unsteady on her feet because Melike takes her arm and leads her to the couch in the living room. She helps her sit down.

“Let me get you that tea.”

“No, Melike Abla. Stay with me,” Reyhan pleads. “I’m fine. I promise. Just a little lightheaded. Emir just likes to worry about me. He tends to overreact.”

“I’ll stay, but you need something,” Melike insists before calling out to Nigar. The other woman comes and Melike instructs her to bring the tea.

Reyhan remembers that Nigar had never really been fond of her. A situation that doesn’t appear to have changed. The look she gives Reyhan almost rivals one of Cavidan’s glares. Reyhan isn’t even sure what she’s ever done to get on Nigar’s bad side this way. All she did was show up with her uncle that fateful day. Reyhan guesses that was all it took.

“Nigar still doesn’t like me,” Reyhan whispers to Melike. “And I can’t imagine Cavidan hanım does either.”

“Kızım …”

“No, it’s fine. I can accept that she hates me,” Reyhan tells her. “I’ve come to terms with it. I’m here for my uncle. Cavidan hanım is free to do whatever she likes. Just so long as she knows I won’t be playing her games this time.”

“Bold words coming from the meek little mouse.”

Melike’s eyes pop open in shock when she hears Cavidan enter the room. Nigar must have called her from the kitchen. Cavidan had an early morning breakfast meeting with the women’s group she’s still trying to join. The group that even Melike knows Cavidan can’t buy her way into. But Cavidan insists on trying anyway. The meeting was set to go at least until noon. Cavidan being home this early means Nigar let her know about Emir and Reyhan.

Melike rises to stand between Cavidan and Reyhan, thinking to protect the younger woman. But Reyhan steps around her and steps right up to Cavidan fearlessly.

“Cavidan hanım,” she greets in a polite, yet guarded tone. “It’s nice to see you.”

“Why are you here? I thought we had gotten rid of you,” Cavidan snaps.

“Pleasant as always, I see,” Reyhan says, her unusual sass surprising Cavidan. “You haven’t changed at all.”

“Well now. Look at you. You really have grown bold, Girl. And you apparently have forgotten how miserable I can make your life.”

“I’m not here to fight with you, Cavidan hanım. I’m just here to see my uncle. You can go back to pretending I don’t exist.”

Reyhan tries to walk away, but Cavidan grabs her by the arm.

“Why pretend you don’t exist when I can make it happen for real?” Cavidan warns. “I know you think you’ve managed to seduce Emir all these months you’ve had him alone. But he’s my son. I know him. Family is most important to him. And now that he’s finally returned home to his family, you will go back to just being the little nothing you always were. I’ll make it so he forgets all about you. Then we’ll see how bold and sassy you really are.”

Cavidan lets go and gives her a little shove that puts her right into the path of Nigar and her tray of tea. The tea spills all over Reyhan’s dress when they collide.

Reyhan yelps in pain when the hot liquid seeps through her clothes and reaches her skin. She quickly pulls the fabric away to avoid getting burned.

“You are such a disgrace,” Cavidan says with a sneer. “Getting rid of you again is going to make my day. This is just the start. You think last time was bad? That was just a warm up.”

“What’s going on out here?”

They are all surprised to hear Emir enter the room.

“Anne. It’s been awhile. How are you?” Emir drops an obligatory kiss on Cavidan’s cheek before moving to Reyhan’s side. His eyebrows scrunch up in confusion when he sees the tea stains all over her. “What happened to you?”

“Just a small accident,” Reyhan says, glaring at Cavidan. “I’m going to the room to change into the clothes Ieft here. And then I’ll go in to see my uncle.”

“About that,” Cavidan starts, a wicked grin on her face. “Son, we didn’t know when you were coming back. And with your father falling ill, Cemre has been here as extra support. She’s truly been the daughter of this mansion. I don’t know what Suna and I would have done without her. She’s been staying in your room and Reyhan’s clothes have been moved to the guest room.”

Emir just stares at her for a long minute, unable to believe what she just said.

“What is wrong with you, Anne?” he asks, still trying to comprehend. “You moved my wife’s things out of our bedroom. And let Cemre stay in there. In our room. In our bed.”

“Emir, just let it go,” Reyhan sighs. It isn’t worth the fight. “I’ll just go see Uncle and we can go.”

“Get that woman out of our room, Anne,” Emir demands. “Today.”

He takes Reyhan by the hand and drags her down the hall. He’s muttering curses under his breath as he checks each guest room for her clothes. When they finally find the right room, he slams the door shut behind them.

“Why is she like this? And why didn’t I ever see it?” he asks, running his hands through his hair.

“Calm down. I’m used to it,” she tells him, turning around so that he can unzip her dress for her. “And we’re not going to be here full time. I can take whatever she throws at me while we’re here visiting Dayı.”

“But you shouldn’t have to,” he sighs, frustrated at his mother’s antics.

“And you shouldn’t have to worry about defending me. I don’t want to come between you and your mother, Emir. She’s your family.”

“You’re my family,” he points out. “You and Ayla and this baby.”

He puts his hand on her belly. It’s not so flat anymore, but it’s not noticeable to anyone else yet.

“We _are_ a family. More than when we left. We’ve changed. We’re different now. We’re a team. She’s not used to us being on the same page. We’ll have to give her some time to get used to the way our relationship is now,” Reyhan says as she pulls on a clean dress, frowning when it’s a bit snug. She trades it out for one with a looser fit. “And once we tell her about Ayla and the baby, I’m sure she’ll come around. Grandchildren have a way of softening a hard heart.”

She hopes. There may be no getting through to Cavidan. But she’ll keep trying for as long as she can.

“Okay. How do I look?” She spins around to model the dress for him.

“Beautiful. As usual.” He leans down to give her a quick kiss. “Now let’s go see Baba.”

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It was harder than she thought to see her uncle so sick. So still. So silent. He can’t move. He can’t speak. All he can do is blink. For a selfish moment she’s glad she never had to see him in the hospital. She can’t imagine what it was like with him hooked to the various machines and tubes. This is bad enough.

“What do the doctors say?” she asks quietly. Emir wraps his arms around her and she falls back into his embrace. She knows she wouldn’t be able to remain standing without him.

“He has a private nurse, so he’s getting good care. But if there’s any hope of him getting better, he’ll need specialized treatment. We’ll probably have to send him away for that. Amca has been consulting a doctor. I believe Narin is her name. She seems hopeful that my father can recover eventually.”

“That’s good,” Reyhan nods, wiping away a stray tear. “Do you hear that, Dayı? You’re going to be fine. You’re going to recover. You have to. Because we have someone special to introduce you to. Our daughter. Ayla. You’re going to love her. She’s such a bright light. She makes everything better.”

“She’s such a character,” Emir adds with a laugh. “She reminds me a lot of Suna when she was little. She’s pure joy. So you come back to us because Ayla is going to need her grandfather.”

He slides his hand down to Reyhan’s stomach.

“And this little one is going to need a name. That’s your job.”

Tears start to stream down Hikmet’s face and they can almost see his struggle. Trapped inside his mind. No way to communicate what he’s thinking.

“It’s fine, Dayı. You have plenty of time to get better,” Reyhan says. “Plenty of time to hold your grandchildren.”

The emotions get the better of her and she can’t stay.

“I’m sorry,” she tells Emir before running out to the veranda of the room. She just needs some air.

Emir gives her a few minutes before he joins her.

“Are you okay?” he asks, knowing that she isn’t. He knew this visit would be hard for her. He would have protected her from it if he could have. But he also knew she needed to see him. All he can do or her right now is hold her. Dry her tears.

She turns around to find his waiting arms and falls into them. He lets her cry herself out.

“How could someone so strong and vibrant end up like that, Emir? My Dayı is supposed to be invincible.”

He scoops her up into his arms and walks over to the seating area. He sits and lets her curl up on his lap. He strokes a hand down her back to calm her.

“It’s going to be okay, Sweetheart. He’ll be fine,” Emir promises her, kissing her on the cheek. “Everything we talked about will happen. He’s going to be a great grandfather. The kids are going to love him and he’s going to love them. We just have to believe that.”

She finally gives him a little smile.

“Somehow it’s easy to believe when you say it.” She lays her head on his chest and looks up at him. “Everything is better and easier with you, Emir.”

This time he smiles. Yes. Love makes everything better. Love makes all the difference.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Cemre enters the mansion and immediately looks for Cavidan. She’s heard the most exciting news and she must pass it on. She finds Cavidan in the living room, standing to the window with a disgusted grimace on her face.

“You clearly haven’t heard the good news,” Cemre says, walking over to the woman. “What has put you in this foul mood?”

“That snake,” Cavidan practically growls, pointing across the way to the veranda off the room where Hikmet is.

Cemre gasps when she realizes what she’s looking at.

“Is that Emir? And Reyhan? Why are they here? What are they doing?”

“They came to see Hikmet,” Cavidan explains.

“But … he’s holding her,” Cemre sputters out. “Why is he holding her like that?”

She watches him pick her up and sit with her, tucking her onto his lap. Kiss her. Stroke her hair, stroke her back. More kisses. A lot more kisses. She feels sick.

“He loves her?” Cemre asks, unable to grasp what she’s seeing. “I don’t understand.”

“It’s nothing,” Cavidan insists. “We can fix this. She’s nothing. We can make him see that again. Now that they’re home, it’ll be that much easier to send her away.”

But Cemre isn’t as sure. No, she’s not sure at all. The kisses get more and more heated. Cemre can’t stop her hand from lifting to her own lips as she watches them, jealousy roiling in her belly.

“Disgusting,” Cavidan spits out before closing the curtains and blocking the view. “That girl has my son acting this kind of way and I won’t stand for it.”

She leads Cemre over to the couch and they sit, calling Nigar for tea.

“Now tell me. What is this news that had you so excited earlier?”

“He loves her,” Cemre says again, still sounding confused.

“Snap out of it, Cemre!” Cavdian orders, clapping her hands in front of Cemre’s face. “This will be fine. Trust me. This girl is just a distraction. One that is easily removed. You should have seen the look on her face when she heard you had replaced her in Emir’s bedroom.”

That gets Cemre’s attention. Nothing like the idea of Reyhan humiliation to put her in a good mood.

“Really?” she asks. “And what did Emir say?”

“Oh, he gave the expected response. _What are you doing, Anne?_ ” she recounts. “ _Get her out of the room, Anne_. But I could see that it was all for show. It was what she expected. So he said it. But he didn’t mean it.”

“Hmm,” Cemre nods. But she still isn’t totally convinced. And she can’t stop seeing those kisses. She closes her eyes and shakes her head to try to shake clear of the memory. Besides, it’s not like she hasn’t seen Emir with other women. She’ll get rid of Reyhan the same way she got rid of the others who came before her.

“Well?” Cavidan says, getting her attention again. “Your news?”

“Oh. Yes. That,” Cemre says, coming back to her senses. “It’s all anyone is talking about. You’ll never guess who has come back to town.”

At Cavidan’s blank stare, she continues.

“The queen of the Istanbul social scene herself … Emine Yilmaz!”

“Yok artık!”

Cavidan starts to do some mental planning. Emine Yilmaz is THE person to get to know. She’s been away for years, traveling with her husband on various business trips. The last time she encountered Emine, things were kind of ugly. There were misunderstandings and Cavidan has never recovered socially. Now is her chance. She has to impress the woman. But she’ll never do it with someone like Reyhan in the family.

“That stupid hillbilly picked the worst time to return,” Cavidan scowls. “Emine Yilmaz will take one look at her and give the whole family the cut. Cemre, we’ve got to get rid of that girl and we’ve got to do it now.”

Or Cavidan’s chances of finally taking her rightful place in society will forever be ruined.

“But what are we going to do?” Cemre asks. “She’s made him fall in love with her. He’s never going to send her away.”

Cavidan taps her chin as she thinks, a brilliant idea suddenly popping into her head.

“Then we make _her_ leave. We use this so-called love she has for him against her. We’ll make her leave him for his own good.”

Yes. That could work, Cavidan realizes the more she considers her plan. This could be just the thing she’s looking for to get rid of that girl. And once she’s gone, Cavidan will get everything she wants.


	23. Chapter 23

Reyhan is feeling lucky. She has almost managed to escape the house with minimal damage. The earlier incident with Cavidan and the tea was harmless. It made the older woman appear desperate and scared, and only required Reyhan to change her clothes. Finding out they moved her things from her and Emir’s bedroom was a hit. Reyhan will admit it. That one had hurt. Feeling unwelcome and unwanted by Cavidan isn’t new for Reyhan, but it still hurts.

But she survived. And the day is almost done. It’s time to go back to the safety of her real home. While saying final goodbyes to Hikmet for the day, Reyhan is left alone with her uncle while Emir goes to have Sefer bring the car around for them.

“You really have to get better now, my dear sweet uncle,” she tells the man. “You can’t miss out on reaping the fruits of your labor. Who would have thought this marriage would work out. But you know what? We’re happy.”

The confession brings a smile to her face. And if she looks hard enough, she can almost imagine her uncle is smiling too.

“Nothing but good days from here on out,” she promises him. “You raised a good son. And he knows how to love me. I’m happier than I could have ever imagined.”

When she hears the door open behind her, she turns around, thinking it’s Emir. But the smile drops from her face when she faces the one person she didn’t want to see.

“Cemre.”

“I guess it was only a matter of time before the trash blew back in,” Cemre sneers at her.

“Not even pretending to be friendly anymore,” Reyhan notices. Cemre apparently no longer sees a need to be a fake friend. “I suppose that’s refreshing. I know exactly where you stand. But then again, after moving into my bedroom, I guess there’s no point in pretending anymore.”

“Let’s face it,” Cemre says. “You know it’s only a matter of time before the change is permanent. Emir is meant to be mine. You’re just a distraction, Canım. Now that you’re back in my domain, we’ll see who wins.”

“This isn’t a game, Cemre. This is my marriage. My life. My family.” Reyhan steps up to Cemre and does something she’s never done. She looks her dead in the eyes with all the confidence and self assurance she never had before. Emir loves her. She knows Emir loves her. And nothing Cemre can do can change that. “Do not try to go up against me.”

Melisa tried, and failed. Reyhan isn’t worried about Cemre and her petty mind tricks.

“I didn’t know what I was up against before,” Reyhan continues. “You had your true face hidden. But I see you, Cemre. I see you and I will fight you. Because Emir sees you too.”

Cemre goes pale at that.

“Emir sees who you really are. He sees that you’re no friend.”

“Lies,” Cemre says, her eyes starting to water. “Emir is mine. And I’m not going to let you take him from me.”

“Emir was never yours, Cemre. The sooner you realize that, the better off we’ll all be.”

Cemre’s tears turn into anger and her eyes darken. Reyhan will admit that the girl is quite scary.

“You clearly don’t know what I’m capable of,” Cemre says. “You clearly have no idea what all I did to you before. You’re already more than halfway out of Emir’s life and don’t even know it.”

“Before?”

“Does the name Vural ring a bell?” Cemre asks and then laughs when both recognition and panic fill Reyhan’s eyes. “Of course, we didn’t realize he would kidnap you. We were just setting it up to look like he was your secret lover. Do you know how easy it was to make Emir doubt you? Do you know how easy it will be to do it again? And maybe this time, the kidnapping will be an actual part of the plan. I know a lot of interesting people. People who will do anything for me. You wouldn’t believe how easy it was to find someone to forge that document about the company shares.”

Reyhan is feeling a little ill at the pride in Cemre’s voice. She’s actually bragging about all the terrible things she’s done. When her head starts to spin, she looks around to find a seat, stumbling her way into it.

“What’s going on in here?”

Emir is at the door, an angry look on his face. He glares at Cemre before finding Reyhan. His anger immediately turns to concern. She looks pale and ill.

“Reyhan? Are you alright?” He goes to kneel in front of her chair, brushing her hair out of her face so that he can see her. “Sweetheart?”

“I’m fine,” she says, giving him a weak smile. “Just a little dizzy.”

She looks up at Cemre noting the smug look is gone.

“And a little sick at what Cemre just told me.”

“Yes,” Emir sighs. He stands to face Cemre too, but takes a hold of Reyhan’s hand to keep that connection. “We’re all sick at what we just heard Cemre say. _All_ of what she just said.”

This time, the panic is in Cemre’s eyes.

“Emir,” she starts. “You misunderstood. And I’m sure Reyhan misunderstood too. I’m your friend, Emir. You know that. I wouldn’t hurt you.”

“When you hurt my wife, you hurt me,” he snaps out. “And from what you just said, all you’ve done is hurt her. But that stops right here, right now, Cemre. You’ve thrown away a lifetime of friendship because of what? Jealousy?”

“Emir …”

“No, Cemre! You don't get to speak. Not anymore. I've heard more than enough from you today. I’ve _seen_ more than enough from you today. You think what you did was okay? Moving into my bedroom, moving my wife out? What kind of sick freak does that? You're done here. Get out of my bedroom. Get out of my house. Or I'll have you thrown out. Is that clear?”

He pulls Reyhan to her feet, pulling her into his arms for a hug.

“Are you okay to move now?” he asks, kissing her on the forehead.

She just nods, looking over at a livid Cemre.

“Let’s go home,” she says, suddenly needing to get out of this toxic place. Suddenly needing to get back to her daughter, her parents. People who love her. She’s had enough of this place for the day.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The trip home is quiet. Reyhan has pulled inside herself, but she allows Emir to maintain the connection by holding her hand. She has her other hand gently caressing her belly. But other than that, she spends the whole ride home silently staring out her passenger side window.

“Are you okay?” he asks her when they pull up to Emine’s house.

She finally turns to him and manages a small smile.

“Fine. Just tired. I’m going to go to bed I think.”

“Or,” he says, offering an alternative. “You go inside. Hug your mom, hug our baby girl, and go get you a nice shower. I’ll bring you something to eat and take care of you the rest of the night.”

Her smile gets a little bigger, and has some actual happiness behind it. She lifts her hand to caress his cheek.

“You really love me, don’t you?”

“Don’t ever doubt it,” he says, leaning down to give her a kiss.

She goes into the house and he sits in the car for a minute. A minute turns into two and then he completely loses track of time. Next thing he knows, Emine is getting into the car next to him.

“What’s happened? She looks terrible,” she asks him.

“I don’t even know where to begin, Emine anne,” he sighs. “My dad was a little worse than I expected him to be. I almost didn’t let Reyhan see him. But she would have taken that even harder. And for some reason, I just can’t get it into my head how much my mother hates my wife. I don’t understand her. How can the woman who raised me, who loved me, who gave birth to me, treat the woman I love like this?”

Emine says nothing. She just pats him on the hand and lets him talk.

“She got away with everything for months,” he continues. “For months, she tortured Reyhan and made her life miserable. And I was blind to it all. I was a part of it all, really. Because the way I treated Reyhan probably made her more miserable than anything my mother or Cemre did.”

“I take it Cavidan did something today?”

“While we were away, my mother let Cemre move in. Not just into the mansion, but into my bedroom. And they moved all of Reyhan’s things to a guest room. She took great pleasure in telling Reyhan all about it,” he tells her, letting out an unamused laugh. “Those two are so sick. And something tells me that I don’t even know the half of what they’re capable of.”

_No, he doesn’t know_ , Emine thinks silently. She has seen Cavidan Tarhun in action over the years. She knows how the woman operates. It’s the main reason Cavidan has never been able to become a part of the social club she so desperately wants to join. Every year she applies and every year, with advice from Emine, Suhelya denies her. Fortunately Cemre’s mother is nothing like Cemre and doesn’t trust Cavidan either.

But one thing Emine knows, she’s not going to let Cavidan torment Reyhan anymore. The woman is soon going to understand that she’s met her match. She’s going to understand that actions have consequences. Emine is going to give Cavidan just enough rope and let the woman ruin herself. And then maybe Reyhan will be able to live the peaceful life she deserves.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Emir and Reyhan visit Hikmet every day for a week before they decide to take Ayla. It’s time for the girl to meet her paternal grandparents. Emir had called ahead and asked everyone to meet in the living room and he’s pleased to see they are all waiting on them. He greets them all with a huge smile when he walks in.

“You look excited, Abi,” Suna says with a smile that matches his own. “What’s going on?”

“Reyhan and I have a little surprise for you all,” he says mysteriously, looking over his shoulder as his wife and daughter walk in behind him. “One we think you all will love as much as we do.”

He has to go back to get Ayla, the girl being unusually shy. She normally rushes head first into any situation. But she seems nervous today.

“What’s the matter, Aylacığım?” he asks her when he squats down to her level. She just squeezes her eyes shut and wraps her arms around his neck. He has no choice but to pick her up and carry her. “I got you, Baby Girl.”

"Are you ready?" he asks Reyhan, looking at her when he gets back to his feet. At her nod, they turn to go back into the living room.

They are met with gasps.

"Who is this little angel?" Suna asks, moving her chair closer to them.

Emir bends down so Suna can see Ayla and the little girl smiles at Suna's friendly face.

"Auntie Suna?" she asks quietly, looking at Emir.

"That's right, Baby,” he says proudly. “You remember I showed you her picture before."

“This is Ayla,” Reyhan explains to everyone else. “Our daughter.”

More gasps.

“We adopted her,” Emir adds.

“How wonderful,” Melike says, coming over the little family. “What a little sweet one.”

“This is Melike Teyze,” Emir tells Ayla. “She took care of me when I was your age.”

Ayla smiles at Melike and lets her kiss her cheeks. Emir takes her around to the others.

“This is Nigar. This is Sefer. And this,” he says, stopping in front of Cavidan, giving her a warning glare. “This is my mother.”

“Babaanne?”

Cavidan cringes when Ayla calls her grandmother. But when she gets another hard glare from Emir, she just sighs and finally looks at Ayla. But her quick perusal of the girl leaves her with an expression on her face that is as if she’s smelling something bad.

“Where did you get her?” Cavidan asks. “I’m guessing she’s some street child with a tragic backstory. You always have had a soft spot for strays.”

“Anne!” Suna cries out in shock at her mother’s harsh words.

“What? I bet I’m right.” Cavidan finds a seat, no longer paying any attention at all to Ayla. She looks at Nigar. “Get me coffee.”

“Right away, Cavidan hanım.”

“Coffee? That’s all you have to say?” Emir asks her, in complete shock over her disinterest in Ayla. “I tell you that you have a grandchild and you ask for coffee?”

“Grandchild? That’s not my grandchild. You can’t bring some strange child in here and expect me to take her into my arms. It’s worse than when your father brought some strange woman home and expected me to accept her as my daughter in law. Never going to happen. Like I said … strays. They’re nothing to me.”

Reyhan’s hand goes to her stomach, feeling the need to protect her unborn child. She looks to Ayla to see her reactions. Right now, Ayla seems okay. She just looks confused. Reyhan would rather not expose her to anymore of Cavidan’s obvious hatred. Reyhan will admit that despite the way Cavidan has treated her since the day they met, she’s surprised Cavidan would be this hateful towards a child.

“Let’s go introduce Ayla to Dayi,” she suggests, trying to get Ayla away from the disappointment that is Cavidan. Especially before the woman insults them even more. “Let’s give your mother time to get used to the idea.”

Cavidan just scoffs and Reyhan realizes that she may be waiting on something that’s never going to happen.

“She can meet him later,” Emir says, taking Reyhan by the hand while still staring daggers at Cavidan. “Coming here was clearly a mistake. Let’s go.”

He turns and walks towards the exit. They get halfway back to the front door before Reyhan can stop him.

“Emir, wait,” she pleads. “Don’t do this. This is your home. She’s your mother.”

“I can’t stand the way she treats you. Puts you down. And she did the same with Ayla. I won’t stand for that.”

“We have to work this out somehow,” Reyhan tells him. “Because she’s only going to continue to blame me for all of this. We have to figure out how to break this cycle. I don’t want you losing your family because of me.”

He lets out a heavy sigh and she can see he wants to be stubborn.

“Please, Emir. Our kids should know all of their family,” she whispers, putting her hand on her belly.

He looks down to where her hand is and sighs again.

“I don’t like how she hurts you.”

“This is all new for her. Us being a family. You protecting me. Before, she thought she was protecting _you_ from _me_ ,” Reyhan reminds him. “But now, she probably thinks I’ve turned you against her. Maybe she doesn’t even realize how much she’s hurting you whenever she hurts me.”

He pulls her to his chest. Kisses her on top of her head.

“You’re too kind. She should have never hurt you in the first place,” he whispers apologetically. “I’m so sorry I never stopped her before.”

“Go talk to her,” Reyhan orders. “Let her know she’s not going to lose you. That’s all she’s afraid of. I’ll take Ayla to see your dad.”

“I’ll go with you. Then I’ll leave you and Ayla with him and come speak to my mother. I promise,” he adds quickly when she gives him a suspicious look. “You’re right. Maybe I just need to explain to her how things are now.”

Her smile makes him happy. But he wishes he could be as optimistic as she is. He wishes he could trust that his mother’s mind will be changed. But he knows his mother. There’s no changing how she feels about Reyhan. He just wishes he knew why.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Cavidan keeps her cool until everyone leaves her alone. Then she throws her coffee cup across the room, letting out a frustrated little scream.

“The nerve of that girl,” she mutters. “Trying to trap my son with some dirty little gutter rat. Tricking him into giving that child the Tarhun name.”

She won’t stand for it. She’s got to get rid of this girl. Both Reyhan and that child.

“Cavidan Teyze.”

Cavidan sighs before turning to look at Cemre as Nigar leads her into the living room. Cemre tells Nigar to bring her coffee and suggests another one for Cavidan before making herself comfortable. Making herself at home. The girl is annoying, but she’s useful. Cavidan needs her to do the heavy lifting in her plan to get rid of Reyhan. Cemre believes she will be Emir’s next wife. Cavidan seriously doubts it. But stranger things have happened. Cavidan needs to stay on the girl’s good side in any event.

“It’s been a day, Cemre dear. My head is killing me.”

“That looks like a Reyhan induced headache,” Cemre says, sympathizing with her. Then she rolls her eyes. “That girl is the worst.”

“Can this visit wait?”

“It can,” Cemre drags out dramatically. “But I think what I have to tell you might make you feel better.”

“You did what I asked?” Cavidan asks, her mood starting to perk up. “What was the result?”

“I managed to whisper the right words to the right people,” Cemre reports. “The gossip will spread soon and Reyhan’s reputation will be ruined. None of the women will want to be associated with her and they will dissuade their husbands from working with Emir.”

“The company as a whole should be fine,” Cavidan says, more to convince herself than Cemre. “But Emir takes too much pride in his work to let himself be considered unsuccessful. He won’t be happy. If we convince Reyhan she’s the cause of his failure, his unhappiness, she can then be easily persuaded to leave him. For his own good.”

“And then she’ll be out of our lives,” Cemre smiles. “I love how your wicked mind works.”

“Her mind is wicked,” Emir agrees, stepping around the corner. “But what are you two plotting now?”

Cemre and Cavidan panic, looking to each other and wondering how much he heard.

Emir schools his features to remain calm. He doesn’t want them to know he overheard every word. He had ducked out of the way when Cemre arrived and stayed hidden to listen to them. And it’s a good thing he did.

“Well?” he prompts, when neither says anything. “What’s going on with you two? You appear to be up to something.”

“Nothing, Son,” Cavidan says, pasting on a fake smile. “Just trying to come up with ways to make you forgive us. I know you were upset with us before you and Reyhan went to Ankara, but we’ve both seen the error of our ways.”

“Listen, things have changed,” he admits to them. “I know we all had our doubts about Reyhan before. But I have no doubts about her now. She’s my wife and I love her. And I will stand by her, no matter what. It’s important you two realize how important she is to me. When you hurt her, you hurt me. If you are against her, then you are against me. There will be no more trying to “protect” me from her. Because she’s my everything. I protect her now. Even if it’s against the two of you.”

“Love?” Cemre breathes out in a disbelieving scoff. “You can’t be serious.”

“Cemre …” he starts, warning in his voice.

“Cemre, dear,” Cavidan says, grabbing the younger woman’s arm to stop her from talking. “Emir says he loves her. We have to believe him. Let him live his life.”

“But …”

“Cemre,” Cavidan stops her again, sending her a glare this time. “We’re going to trust Emir’s choices.”

“Thank you, Anne. I appreciate that. All I want is to live a normal life with Reyhan and Ayla. You accepting them will go a long way to making that happen.”

“Of course, Son.”

She keeps the fake smile on her face until he leaves them alone.

“What were you even saying?” Cemre asks from between her clenched teeth. “What’s this about accepting his choices? Accepting Reyhan? Are we letting go of our plan? And who is Ayla?”

“Ayla is a long, unbelievable story,” Cavidan says, rubbing her temples. She doesn’t want to think about that child right now. She’s just another tool in Reyhan’s arsenal to trap Emir. “But we go on as planned. Nothing changes. The sooner that girl is out his life, the better.”

Standing around the corner, Emir hears it all. He promised Reyhan he’d talk to his mother and he did. But she’s never going to give Reyhan a chance. She’s never going to accept Ayla. Maybe not even the new baby. He tried, because Reyhan asked. But now, it’s time to handle Cavidan Tarhun in his way. The time for ‘talking’ has passed. 


	24. Chapter 24

“Emine anne? Can we talk?”

After his last conversation with Cavidan, he realized something needs to be done about his mother. Reyhan must be protected at all costs. So bringing her pseudo adopted parents up to speed is a no brainer. They will have her back if there’s ever a time he can’t.

“Emir, Oğlum. Come in,” she offers, giving him a huge smile. “How’s your father doing?”

“The same,” he says with a sigh, unable to hide his sadness. He falls into her arms when she offers a hug, feeling a twinge of guilt at the way she treats him. She treats him like he’s really her son. Reyhan has never received this kind of love from his mother.

“He’ll be fine. We’ll make sure of it,” Emine says. “Just let us know if there’s ever anything you need from us and it’s yours. You know that, don’t you? You’re our son too, as much as Reyhan is our daughter. As much as our own natural sons. So Hikmet is our family now.”

“Thank you,” he nods. “We may be looking into sending him to a clinic. He hasn’t gotten any worse, but he also isn’t getting any better at home. A clinic may be better for him.”

“But that’s not what you want to talk about,” Emine guesses.

“My mother is out of control,” he spits out before he loses his nerve. “She has it out for Reyhan and nothing I say or do seems to be able to stop her. She’s trying to publicly disgrace Reyhan to force her to leave me to protect my career.”

“Ah. So that’s her game.” Emine takes a moment to think about what Emir just told her. She can’t say she’s surprised that Cavidan has some sort of plan. But this is more ambitious than Emine could have imagined.

“I mean, I talked to Reyhan on the way home. So at least she’ll be on the lookout for my mother or Cemre trying to trick her. And hopefully she won’t believe anything they say to her. And hopefully she knows that I would gladly leave the company before I let her leave me. She’s far more important to me than the holding. But what about what they’re saying about her? What about them purposely spreading lies and rumors that will hurt her?”

“You let me worry about that. No one is going to hurt my child. And you know Murat won’t let your holding suffer. The only thing for you and Reyhan to do is to stay patient. Your mother will get what’s coming to her.”

Patience is not what he’s known for. Not when it comes to Reyhan and keeping her healthy. Happy. Certainly not when it comes to his children. But he’ll be patient for now. For now, he’ll let his mother believe she’s getting away with her latest game. But if anything happens to Reyhan, then all bets are off. If any of this touches Ayla or the baby, his mother will regret the day she gave birth to him.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Finishing his conversation with Emine, he seeks out his wife. The past week or so has been stressful for Reyhan. Stressful for them both. But she’s pregnant and has the extra hormones. So he knows this has been extra hard on her. He’s never been more grateful for Emine and Murat. They’ve been better for Reyhan than Emir ever imagined. He knows Reyhan loves him. And he loves her with everything in him. But he wasn’t enough for her. He doesn’t think she realizes how complete she has become from having loving parents support her. Yes, they would have been perfectly happy if it was just the two of them. But each addition to their family has increased their happiness exponentially. First Ayla. Then Emine and Murat. Zafer, Defne, and baby Daniel. Reyhan is truly and well loved. And he couldn’t be happier for her. She deserves it all.

He smiles when she stretches herself awake from her nap. When they got back from visiting his dad, he sent her straight to bed. Seeing how comfortable she is makes him wish he had joined her. But it’s time for her to get up. She needs to eat.

“Wake up, Sleepyhead,” he whispers, leaning down to kiss her. First her lips, then her belly. “Did you have a good nap.”

“Great,” she smiles, blinking sleepy eyes at him. “I wish you had joined me, though.”

“I can join you now,” he says, kicking off his shoes and climbing onto the bed next to her. Food can wait. He pulls her into his arms and lets out a contented sigh. He loves holding her like this.

“I had a good dream,” she tells him, looking up at him with that special way she has. The way that always makes him lose his mind a little with wanting her. “Do you want to guess what it was about?”

He lifts his eyebrow when he feels her hand slide under his shirt and begin to roam his chest. He’s starting to get a very good idea of what she was dreaming about. He responds by pulling her even closer so that she can feel his reaction to her. Yes, food can definitely wait.

“How about I make that dream come true,” he growls, taking her waiting mouth with his own. Losing himself in her and making her melt from the fire in his kiss. Suddenly, all the problems weighing so heavily on his mind disappear as he continues to sink into her warm embrace. This woman is life to him. He doesn’t know how he ever existed before her. Or how he would survive without her. He just has to make sure that never happens. Even if it means stopping his own mother.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

When they get to the house the next morning to see his father, Emir realizes it’s one of the last places he wants to be. It’s definitely one of the last places he wants Reyhan to be. Until he can figure out what to do about his mother, the best option seems to just keep Reyhan away from her. But he can’t keep Reyhan away from his father. That means he needs to get his father moved as soon as he can. Kemal and the doctor he knows, Narin, will be meeting them here later to discuss the move. Today might be one of the last days Reyhan has to deal with his mother. A fact that should bring relief. But for some reason, he feels like walking into this house today will only bring disaster.

“Come on,” she says, gently tugging at his hand. “I’m suddenly starving and I can practically taste one of Melike Abla’s omelettes. Do you think she’ll make me one?”

He just smiles, amused at her appetite. She’s always hungry and he loves it. He loves feeding her and watching her eat, knowing his child is being nourished. He loves the way her cheeks are becoming fuller, her belly a little rounder. He loves everything about her ever changing body.

She, on the hand, wasn’t as happy this morning. She woke him with a shower of bras landing on his head.

_“None of these fit anymore,” she said, her bottom lip quivering as she bravely tried to hold back her unshed tears._

_“No, I don’t see how they would fit,” he said, his eyes drifting to the breasts that have been causing him more distraction than usual for months now, even before they realized she was pregnant. That should have been their first clue about the baby._

_“Pervert,” she tossed at him. But he soon had her giggling when he pulled her down onto the bed and rolled on top of her, burying his face in her neck. “Your beard tickles.”_

_Her laughs soon turned to gasps and moans as his mouth travelled down to show her how much he appreciated those very breasts that offended her._

_“We’re going to be late,” she said, offering a weak protest. But she soon became as lost in him as he already was in her._

But she was right. They did end up being late. Which is why she’s hungry now since they only had time to grab something quick on the way out. And why they go straight to the kitchen now.

“Emir! Reyhan!” Melike greets, happy to see them as always.

“My wife is craving one of your omelettes, Melike Abla.”

“Emir!” Reyhan blushes in embarrassment and glares at him. But then when her stomach growls, she can’t refute what he’s saying. But she’s even more embarrassed. “You don’t have to go through any trouble, Melike Abla.”

“Is our baby hungry?” Melike asks with a knowing smile, gently rubbing Reyhan’s belly. “Of course I’ll get you whatever you want, Kızım.”

“We’ll be in the office,” Emir says, taking Reyhan’s hand and pulling her out the kitchen. “My uncle and the doctor will be here soon. Then we’ll be with my father.”

They meet Cemre on their way out and Emir practically snarls at the sight of her.

“And Melike Abla?” he says, staring straight at Cemre. “Make sure my wife and I are not disturbed.”

“Of course, Oğlum.”

They continue past Cemre, not even looking back at her. Not even speaking to her. Cemre is filled with rage.

“Did you need something, Cemre?” Melike asks when she notices the girl.

Cemre just lets out a frustrated huff and leaves the kitchen. She goes back to the table by the pool where she had been having breakfast with Cavidan.

“Emir and that woman are here,” Cemre spits out, pushing aside her empty coffee cup. That’s the reason she had gone into the kitchen… for a refill. But she got angry and distracted seeing Emir with Reyhan. He was holding her hand today and giving instructions not to disturb them. Whatever that means.

“Calm down, Cemre. They’re here almost every day,” Cavidan explains. “They come to see Hikmet. You know that.”

“Seeing them together makes me sick. Why her? When is it going to be me?”

Cavidan hides her reaction behind a sip of her coffee. This girl is crazier than she thought. Marrying Emir is one thing. To serve her purposes, Cavidan will help Cemre achieve that goal. But she didn’t realize Cemre had such unrealistic expectations. Like for Emir to actually love her. Or want to be with her. Even Cavidan can see that for whatever reasons, he seems to love Reyhan for now. But if Cavidan has her way, that love will be over soon.

“Just be patient, Cemre. Remember our plan. This girl will be gone soon. We already have something in the works to disgrace her,” she reminds Cemre. “But we also have that other matter to work on. I keep losing out on chances to get to Emine Yilmaz. Being aligned with her would send me to the top of the social tier here in Istanbul. But how do we get to her?”

“I heard she’s taken a select few under her wings, so to speak. They seem to be next in line to be the “darlings” of society. I don’t know who they are yet. But we need to get on their good side. Maybe they can be our way to get to Emine hanım.”

“Cemre! You’re brilliant!” Cavidan says, amazed the girl has been able to come up with a logical suggestion. “Now get on your little social media thing and find out who these women are. I’ll invite them here immediately.”

Cemre scrolls through Instagram for a few minutes before her eyes light up in delight.

“That may not be necessary. I found one potential.”

She turns around the phone so Cavidan can see.

“Her name is Narin. She’s a doctor and … what?” Cemre asks, confused at the sudden smile that comes to Cavidan’s face.

“And she’s on her way here as we speak,” Cavidan explains. “She’s the doctor that will be coming with Kemal to look at Hikmet.”

This will be easier than she thought.

“Nigar!” she calls out, waiting for the harried maid to show up. “Have everyone stop what they’re doing. We’re having a special guest today and I want everything to be perfect.”

She’ll impress this woman and be that much closer to getting to Emine Yilmaz. But first she has to figure out a way to keep Reyhan out of sight. An idea comes to mind and she can’t hide her smile.

“What are you thinking?” Cemre asks.

“How would you like to play Emir’s wife for the day? While also cooling down Reyhan’s passions at the same time?”

“Anlamadım.” Cemre stares incomprehensibly at her, not understanding what she’s implying.

_“Don’t worry, Cemre. You’ll understand soon enough,”_ Cavidan says silently. Once Cavidan is done with Reyhan, she will know how truly inconsequential she is. She’ll be that much closer to getting out of their lives once and for all.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

“How long do you think we can hide out in here?” Emir presses a kiss to that one spot on her neck that always makes her melt. This time is no exception. He smiles against her skin when she becomes boneless against him.

“Emir,” she says, half in a moan, half in a groan. “Kemal Abi and his doctor will be here soon. So we can’t exactly stay in here all day.”

She half heartedly tries to push him away. But the more he touches her, the less she can resist him.

“Come on, Emir. We only came in here to have breakfast. But we finished eating long ago. We need to go.”

But her hand goes up to his head and tangles through his thick hair as she holds him to her, still unwilling to let him go. A knock at the door makes the choice for both of them.

“Oh well, I guess playtime is over,” he says, winking mischievously at her. He scoots her off his lap and sets her on the couch next to him before getting up to answer the door. He only opens it partially to give Reyhan a chance to straighten up her clothes and hair behind him.

Melike is at the door, looking apologetic.

“Do you have an estimated time of arrival for your guests? Your mother wants to serve refreshments.”

“They should be here soon, Melike Abla,” Emir says, frowning when Reyhan comes up behind him and pushes past him to go out the door. “Where are you going?”

“To help Melike Abla in the kitchen and be a good hostess,” she tells him, swatting away his hand with a laugh when he tries to hold her back. He does manage to sneak in a kiss to her cheek, which causes her to blush. Then scowl most adorably at him.

He just laughs.

“I’ll call Amca to see when they’re getting here,” Emir offers playfully. “Don’t let my beloved work too hard, Melike Abla.”

Reyhan blushes again.

“He’s so terribly wicked,” she says to Melike as they head into the kitchen. But she still has a small, secret smile on her face.

“Ahh, there you two are,” Cavidan says when the two women reach the kitchen. “Here is a list of what I’d like served for the doctor. Will this be a problem?”

“Of course not,” Melike says, looking over the list. “But I may need to go to the store or check the walk in freezer for some of the ingredients. We don’t usually keep them on hand.”

“I’ll go down and check in the freezer,” Reyhan offers. “You get started on some of the other things and I’ll be right back.”

Cavidan hides her smile. _“Right back”_ is an optimistic estimation. No. Reyhan will be out of the way for a little bit longer than that. She just doesn’t realize it yet.

“Now that I think of it, that dish may not be a good idea,” Cavidan says after Reyhan is gone and out of earshot. She points to something else on the list. “I’d much rather this one. I need you to have Sefer take you to the store because we definitely won’t have the ingredients. It’ll be faster if you go since you know exactly what to look for. Go ahead now. I’ll let Reyhan know when she gets back up here from the freezer.”

After Melike and Sefer leave, Cavidan heads back to her usual spot in the living room. When Cemre shows up a few minutes later, a triumphant smile on her face, she knows the job got done. Reyhan won’t be bothering them anymore today.

“Just in time,” Cavidan says when the doorbell rings. “Time to go greet our guests, Cemre.”

Nigar opens the door and leads them into the room with Cavidan and Cemre.

Cavidan warmly greets Narin while practically scowling at Kemal. The two don’t even pretend to like each other. Emir comes out a minute later and also greets the guests.

“Where’s Reyhan?” Emir asks, looking around for her when Nigar brings out a tray of tea. He waves the woman off. They plan on going directly back to see his father so tea isn’t necessary at the moment. But he’s curious to know where Reyhan is. She had wanted to be present when Narin examined his father.

“Not sure,” Cavidan says, putting on a fake confused look. “Melike needed to go to the store. Maybe Reyhan went with her. No matter. Cemre can go back with you. Cemre?”

She motions for the girl to escort everyone back to Hikmet. Cemre tucks her hand into the crook of Emir’s arm and signals the others to precede them. Emir immediately pulls away and slides her a dirty look when the others walk ahead.

“What are you doing?” he asks, continuing to eye her suspiciously. He keeps his voice low to avoid his uncle and the doctor overhearing.

“What you wife should be doing,” Cemre whispers back. “But she apparently didn’t deem this an important enough task.”

“Watch it,” he warns her, before pulling out his phone to call Reyhan. When she doesn’t answer, he decides to try calling Melike. Cemre stops him.

“Emir, focus on your father. And respect the doctor’s time. Don’t make her wait around just because your wife didn’t see fit to show up for you.”

He scowls at her again, but realizes she’s right. He puts his phone back into his pocket. He’ll let the doctor get started on the exam and then try to call Reyhan again later.

“Let’s get started,” he says when they all get to the room.

“I’ll bring that tea now,” Cemre says brightly. “Doctor, just let me know if there’s anything else you’d like.”

Narin gives her a tight smile before getting distracted by something over Cemre’s shoulder.

“That won’t be necessary.”

Cemre’s heart drops when she hears the voice behind her. She turns around with wide, shock filled eyes to stare at Reyhan standing in the doorway. Reyhan’s knowing eyes stare right back at her.

“You made it,” Emir says with a huge smile, moving to take her hand and pull her into the room.

“I apologize for being a bit late. But I’ve been making arrangements to have a light brunch set up in Emir’s office for when we’re done here.” She turns to look at Cemre. “So don’t worry about the tea, Cemre. I’ve handled everything. I’m sure there are other things you could be doing. We don’t need you in here anymore.”

The dismissal makes Cemre livid. Even more so when the previously reticent Narin is so open and warm meeting Reyhan. The woman had only given Cemre a tepid handshake.

“I’ve heard a lot about you, Reyhan,” Narin says. “Kemal speaks so highly of his nephew and the beautiful young woman he married. These Tarhun men seem to adore you.”

“She’s a keeper,” Emir jokes, wrapping his arm around Reyhan. But he can’t resist dropping a kiss on her forehead, showing how much he really does adore her.

Cemre gives them all her meanest scowl, but realizes she’s no longer even visible to them. They’ve already forgotten all about her. And all because of this stupid hillbilly who has taken Emir from her. She turns and storms out the room, stomping out to Cavidan.

“Cemre, dear. How are things going in there?”

“My presence is no longer required,” Cemre pouts. “ _She_ showed up.”

“Who? Reyhan? How? I thought you locked her in the freezer.”

“I don’t know!” Cemre yells. “Someone must have let her out.”

“I let her out.”

Both women look over to see that the words have come from Suna. Cavidan frowns at her daughter. Shock and surprise are quickly followed by disbelief and disappointment. How could her own daughter have betrayed her like this?

“I heard you two plan this whole thing earlier today. I thought you were joking … until I saw Cemre push Reyhan into the freezer and lock it, taunting her through the window. Why would you two even do anything like this?” Suna scolds them. “What is wrong with you?”

“Suna, it’s not what you think,” Cavidan tries to explain, but sees that stubborn look on Suna’s face and realizes there’s no way to convince the girl of her lies.

“You’re saying I got it all wrong? You’re saying that I didn’t see all of this craziness happen with my own eyes?” Suna asks, anger burning in her eyes. “I bet my brother will believe me. And then you’ll have to answer to him.”

Cavidan can’t let that happen. She gives Cemre a look and for once, the girl seems to understand her silent clues.

“Suna, Canım. This has gotten out of hand,” Cemre says, walking to her. She takes the back of the wheelchair in hand and pushes Suna towards the door. “Let’s go out for some air and calm down. Then when we get back, we can try to talk about this again.”

Cavidan waits until they’re gone before picking up her phone and reluctantly placing a call.

“Doctor? Cavidan Tarhun here. It’s about Suna. What I feared would happen has happened. She’s completely lost touch with reality. Is the option to have her admitted still available?”

It’s going to be a long time before Suna comes back through those doors. It may be extreme, but this is the only way. Cavidan has to be sure that Suna won’t be telling Emir anything.


	25. Chapter 25

Reyhan stares out the window of the bedroom. It’s the first time she’s been back in the room since they returned to Istanbul. She stays in the lounge area because the sleeping area still has too many signs of Cemre. Little things she knows Cemre left behind on purpose. Jewelry. Her scent all over the place. And she even has pictures of herself and Emir all around the room. The place is just tainted now.

She shivers involuntarily, remembering how her last encounter with Cemre ended. The look in her eye as she stood to the door of the freezer, the door firmly locked, with Cemre on the outside and Reyhan on the inside. Cemre looked through the small window and smiled. A crazed, creepy smile. And Reyhan knew she wasn’t getting out of there any time soon. Her hands had immediately gone to her stomach, as if to be able to protect the baby from their fate.

But fortunately, fate had other things in mind. Almost immediately, the door had opened again. Reyhan thought maybe Cemre had changed her mind. Maybe she had been only playing a cruel, vicious game. But looking around, Reyhan couldn’t see the woman. Instead, Suna was there. Reyhan had nearly cried in relief seeing her. But she didn’t. She held it together. She pretended as if nothing had happened for Emir’s sake. For her uncle’s sake. She had to get through the meeting with Kemal and Narin without worrying Emir.

But all that is over now. Emir is out seeing Kemal and Narin off. And Reyhan is left alone with the reality of what had almost happened to her. To her baby. All at the hands of Cemre. And according to Suna, all set up by Cavidan. Once again, Reyhan is shocked at the depths of the woman’s hate for her.

“You’re quiet,” Emir says from the door of the room, startling her with his sudden presence. She lost track of time and didn’t realize he had come to the room. She doesn’t even know how long he’s been standing there.

“Did Kemal Abi and the doctor leave?” she asks him, trying to bring her mind back to the present.

“Just now,” he nods, walking up to her. He pulls her into his arms and holds her tight. It’s just what she needs. She instantly relaxes into him. “You doing okay?”

“Tired,” she admits. Sad. Heartbroken. But mostly tired. And not just physically tired. “It’s been a long day.”

“You want to lie down for awhile? Maybe take a nap,” he suggests.

“Definitely not in there,” she says, rolling her eyes. “Let’s just say Cemre left her mark. I don’t feel comfortable in there anymore.”

He nods sympathetically.

“I’ll have Melike Abla arrange a deep cleaning of the place. Have some people come in to get it as clean as you want. We should also consider some renovations to include an area for a nursery for the kids for when we have to stay here with them. They’ll have a place close to us. I know you’d prefer to keep them with us.”

“That means it’s time to tell everyone about the baby,” she realizes, trepidation in her voice.

“Well, the baby won’t stay hidden much longer anyway,” he points out with a smile, cupping her belly. It’s still mostly hidden by her clothes, but it’s getting rounder. That, along with other subtle changes, will have people suspecting pretty soon. “Let’s go tell them now. And also let them know Narin says Baba is a good candidate for the clinic. The doctor is preparing the paperwork now to get my father into the clinic in Italy. Based on her examination, that clinic seems to be the one that would most suit his needs. If everything works out, he should be ready to go by the end of the week.”

“So soon?” But as soon as she asks, she knows it’s probably for the best. And she knows it’s time to tell Emir why. It’s nothing she can prove, of course. But after what happened to her today, her suspicions are strong.

“Hey, you just got really pale,” he says, concern filling his voice. “Let’s sit. I’ll call Melike Abla to bring tea or …”

“No,” she interrupts him. “No tea. Let’s just sit. I have something to tell you. It’s important.”

They sit and he takes her hands in his own. She appreciates the contact. It will hopefully give her the strength to get through this conversation she knows they need to have.

“Just tell me. Are you okay? Is the baby okay?” he adds quickly, panic filling his already wary eyes.

“Baby is fine,” she assures him, lifting a hand to cup his cheek. “We’re both fine.”

“Okay,” he sighs, obvious relief in his voice. “So what’s this about?”

But sudden realization comes across his face when he thinks about the only thing this could be about.

“It’s my mother, isn’t it?” He sighs again. This time, an impatient one. “What has she done now?”

“Possibly nothing. Possibly a lot more than we ever thought her capable of,” Reyhan starts, pausing when he turns his confused gaze on her.

“I don’t understand.”

“Narin brought up something earlier. When we were all in the office after she examined Dayi. She asked what happened with his accident and if there was anyway it wasn’t an accident.”

“It was an accident,” Emir insists. “I talked to Melike Abla and she said only family was in the house that day. And no one here would hurt my father. You know that.”

When she doesn’t say anything, he finally understands what she’s trying to say.

“You think my mother did this? Come on, Reyhan. I mean, yes. She has been cruel to you. I get that. But you think she could do something like this? Hurt my father? Sweetheart, there’s no way. No way.”

Reyhan pulls away from him and goes to stand by the window again. It hurts that she’ll make him have these doubts. But she has to put the safety of her baby and her uncle first. She has to protect them if no one else can.

“Listen, Reyhan. I know things have never been great between you and my mother. But even suggesting she could …”

“She locked me in the freezer today,” Reyhan whispers, interrupting his defense of Cavidan.

There’s a long silence before he finally speaks.

“Excuse me?”

“Well, she had Cemre do it. But it was her idea,” Reyhan explains. “Fortunately Suna overheard them planning it all and was there to immediately let me out.”

“What? Why? Why would they do something like that?” Emir is flustered. Confused.

“I was in the way,” Reyhan says with a little shrug. “She wants Cemre to be her daughter in law, your wife. She wanted you and Cemre to play the happy couple and put on a show for the doctor today.”

“So they locked you in the freezer? Do you realize how insane that sounds?” he asks, his voice tinged with disbelief. And anger.

It’s the anger that sets her off more than anything.

“So I’m crazy now? Suna is crazy now? You think we’re making this up?” She hates when the tears begin to flow, but she can’t stop them. “You think it’s my fault they hate me? It’s my fault they would lock me inside of a freezer, Emir? A freezer! Do you know how scared I was? Do you know that I had no idea what they were planning to do to me? Do you know what it felt like to be helpless to save myself, let alone my baby?”

“You’re right,” he quickly apologizes, trying to calm her down. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have doubted you. I shouldn’t have downplayed what you had to go through. I’m sorry.”

He tries to pull her towards him, but she pushes his hand away, wrapping her arms around herself instead. It breaks his heart to see her like this.

“Reyhan, Sweetheart. Calm down, okay? You’re worrying me.”

“I thought she was finally giving me a chance. Your mother,” Reyhan starts to explain, her voice still filled with tears, with sadness. And a bit of resignation. “I thought she was finally going to accept me. She was there in the kitchen when Melike Abla and I got there. She had a menu. I thought she was accepting my help. She sent me down to the freezer to check for ingredients. And that’s when it happened. I guess Cemre was already down there waiting on me. She shoved me inside when I leaned over to turn on the light. I fell.”

She opens her palms and looks down at them, slight bruising where she had taken the brunt of her fall.

“Oh Baby,” he says with a sigh, wanting to reach out to her. But she pulls her hands away again before he can touch her. She wraps her arms around herself again and he can see that she’s shivering. He feels like the worst kind of jerk as she continues her story, still sounding so lost and alone.

“Then while I was still down on the ground, she slammed the door and locked it. I got to my feet and ran over to the door, beating on it, calling out to her, thinking maybe it was an accident. But she just stared at me. You know that little window that’s there? She stared at me through that little window and even laughed. Then she walked away. And I was left in there alone. Not knowing how I’d ever get out. _If_ I’d ever get out.”

“Come here,” he says quietly, his own tears falling now. He reaches for her again and this time she allows his touch. “Come here and just let me hold you for a minute.”

He didn’t realize how close he had been to losing her. And all because of his mother. It’s not like he didn’t believe Reyhan before. He just couldn’t believe anyone, let alone his mother, could do something so heinous. But hearing the story was too chilling. And he knows Reyhan wouldn’t make anything like that up.

“I’m so sorry I made you think I didn’t believe you. I didn’t want to believe you, Sweetheart. I didn’t want to believe what I was hearing. But you’re right. If she did this to you, then who’s to say she didn’t also do something to my father. That’s another hard pill to swallow.”

He can’t even think of that possibility right now. He just needs to get his father out of this house. He needs to get Reyhan out. Then he can deal with his mother. But first he has to take care of Reyhan. He just continues to hold her while she continues to cry. He continues to whisper apologies while their tears cleanse them both. He failed her. He’s not going to let it happen again.

“You rest here for a little while,” he says once she’s calm, easing her down into a reclining position on the couch. He grabs the cover to lay over her.

“Where are you going?” she asks, reaching out for him. “Don’t leave me in here alone.”

“Never, Baby,” he says, brushing her hair off her face and kissing her forehead. “Melike Abla is going to sit with you. I’m going to go speak with Suna and then my mother.”

“Emir!” she calls out in a panic. “Don’t! She’ll blame this on me too!”

“I won’t say anything other than what both you and Suna can corroborate,” he promises. “And that’s Cemre’s part in this. I won’t let her know we suspect her too. Or that we have questions about what happened to Baba.”

She stares at him for a minute before she finally accepts. She gives him a nod and lets out a long, tired sigh.

“Sleep, my love,” he orders gently. He strokes her hair until she closes her eyes.

She’s just drifted off when Melike knocks lightly on the door.

“Perfect timing,” he says quietly when the woman comes in. “I need to ask you a few questions and then have you sit with Reyhan until I get back.”

“Of course, Oğlum. What do you want to know?”

“Earlier today. Tell me everything starting from the time you came to get Reyhan from my office up until the time you got back from the store.”

She gives him a confused look, but complies with his strange request anyway and tells him all she remembers.

“So after Reyhan went down to the freezer, my mother suddenly changed her mind about the menu and ended up sending you to the store?” Emir asks, trying to get clarification on the story she tells.

“Evet,” Melike nods. “She sent me to the store and said she’d tell Reyhan about the change of plans. I assumed that’s what happened because by the time I got home, the kitchen staff was working on the small luncheon Reyhan had ordered to be delivered to your office.”

Taken on its own, the story is harmless enough. But knowing what happened to Reyhan, it offers more proof that his mother was behind this whole thing. He just closes his eyes and shakes his head, unable to believe what his mother has done even with the proof right in his face.

“Emir? Is everything okay?”

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out,” he says with a tired sigh. “You stay with Reyhan. I’m going to go see Suna now.”

“Suna isn’t here,” Melike tells him. “She’s been gone since earlier. Your mother said she’d be with her friends today.”

Emir tries to think back to the last time Suna went out with friends and comes up blank. Maybe things changed while he was in Ankara, but he doesn’t think so. He calls her phone just in case. Maybe Suna is exactly where his mother says she is. But Emir has a bad feeling she isn’t. When he passes by her room, he hears her phone ringing inside and he knows he’s right. Suna isn’t in her room and she doesn’t have her phone. Which means she probably didn’t leave home by choice.

“Oh, Anne. What are you up to?” he wonders aloud. _And what did you do with Suna?_

Only one way to find out. He’s going to have to confront his mother. And put on the best performance of his life. He’s going to have to stare into her guilty eyes and act like he has no idea what she’s done. Then he’s going to have to figure out a way to end his mother’s reign of terror. Because no one will be safe until she’s stopped.


End file.
